Letters of Request are a mechanism for obtaining evidence located in another jurisdiction for use in civil or commercial proceedings. They can be used to obtain documentary evidence, oral or written witness evidence, and, in appropriate circumstances, other forms of evidence such as medical records.
In cross-border litigation, a Letter of Request can provide a route to evidence that would otherwise be outside the territorial reach of the court conducting the underlying proceedings.
Reasons to use a Letter of Request
A Letter of Request is, broadly, a formal request from a court in one jurisdiction to the judicial authority of another jurisdiction for assistance in obtaining evidence.
For example, lawyers conducting proceedings in England and Wales may need documents held by a non-party in another country, or may need evidence from a witness who is resident abroad. Conversely, a foreign court may request the assistance of the English courts in obtaining evidence from a person or organisation located in England and Wales.
The mechanism is particularly useful where the person from whom evidence is sought is not a party to the underlying proceedings and therefore cannot simply be subjected to the ordinary disclosure or witness-compulsion powers of the requesting court.
A Letter of Request cannot however be used outside of the scope of the disclosure rules in the relevant court. The receiving court will apply its own domestic law when deciding whether, and to what extent, the request can be given effect.
The legislative framework
The principal international instrument is the Hague Convention of 18 March 1970 on the Taking of Evidence Abroad in Civil or Commercial Matters (the Hague Convention).
The Hague Convention establishes a framework for judicial co-operation in obtaining evidence abroad. As at April 2026, it has 69 Contracting Parties. The precise operation of the Hague Convention between two particular jurisdictions must nevertheless be checked, including any declarations, reservations or objections made by the relevant states.
In England and Wales, the principal domestic legislation is the Evidence (Proceedings in Other Jurisdictions) Act 1975 (the EPOJ Act).
The EPOJ Act gives the High Court power to make orders for evidence to be obtained in England and Wales pursuant to a request from a foreign court or tribunal. Section 2 permits orders for, among other things, the examination of witnesses and the production of documents.
Incoming Letters of Request: The procedure in the England and Wales
For Letters of Request incoming to the UK, the first draft is usually undertaken by the foreign lawyers in the jurisdiction of the ongoing proceedings. However, it is sensible to get the input of UK lawyers before the first draft is finalised. UK lawyers can make sure that the request complies with the fairly restrictive approach of the UK courts.
The finalised Letter of Request is then sent to the domestic court for approval.
Following that, the request is sent to the UK Ministry of Justice and the Foreign Process Section at the Royal Courts of Justice. It is then served on the receiving party.
If receiving party does not object to complying with the request, the Foreign Process Section takes the evidence. It is fairly unusual for Letters of Request to be met with no resistance, given that it is placing a burden on the receiving party to search for and disclose information in proceedings that they have no direct interest in. The request may seek documents that are deemed sensitive or confidential, which the receiving party would prefer not to freely disclose.
It is common therefore that the receiving party will object. In that case, the requesting party (through their English solicitors) will need to apply for an order to execute the Letter of Request to give it effect.
The application
For a request falling within CPR Part 34, an application for an order under the EPOJ Act is made to the High Court.
The application should be supported by the documents required by the CPR and Practice Direction 34A. These include:
- the Letter of Request;
- a statement of the issues relevant to the foreign proceedings;
- a list of questions, or the subject matter of the questions, to be put to the witness;
- translations where required; and
- where appropriate, a draft order.
An undertaking is also required in relation to the Secretary of State's expenses.
If the court makes an order giving effect to the request, the order and the evidence on which it was made must be served on the person required to provide the evidence. The examination can take place before an examiner of the court or another person whom the court considers suitable.
The receiving party is entitled to raise objections. For example, objections may concern the scope of the request, privilege, relevance, confidentiality, the particular documents sought, or whether the requested evidence could properly be compelled under English law.
A person affected by an order made without notice may also have the ability to apply to vary or discharge it under CPR 23.10. A receiving party should take specialist advice about an incoming letter of request to ensure compliance and understand the options available to them.
Where an order has been made and a witness subsequently refuses to comply, the court has enforcement powers. Practice Direction 34A expressly provides that a person who wilfully refuses to obey an order made under Part 34 may be proceeded against for contempt of court.
Drafting a Letter of Request
A request should explain clearly:
- the nature of the foreign proceedings;
- the issues in dispute;
- why the evidence sought is relevant to those issues;
- the identity of the person or entity believed to hold the evidence;
- the particular documents or evidence sought; and
- how the evidence is expected to be used in the foreign proceedings.
The objective is to give the English court sufficient information to determine whether the statutory requirements are satisfied, while avoiding an unnecessarily broad request.
The court is particularly concerned to ensure that the Letter of Request does not become a means of conducting general disclosure or a speculative investigation.
Specificity: avoid a fishing expedition
One of the most important principles governing Letters of Request in England and Wales is that they must be specific.
Section 2(4) of the EPOJ Act provides that an order cannot require a person to produce documents other than particular documents specified in the order as appearing to the court to be, or likely to be, in that person's possession, custody or power.
This places an important limitation on requests for documentary evidence.
A request for a defined and readily identifiable group of documents may be acceptable where the description is sufficiently precise. For example, a compendious description like: “monthly bank statements for August to December 2020.”(1)
By contrast, general words like a request for “any memoranda, correspondence or other documents relevant thereto” or “any memoranda, correspondence or other documents referred to therein” are too wide and will be struck out.
In Galas v Aleve Inc [2018] EWHC 2366 (QB), Morris J set aside part of an order giving effect to a letter of request from a US court on the basis that it identified categories of documents, which were impermissible, rather than specific documents.
A Letter of Request should not simply reproduce a foreign jurisdiction's broad discovery request. It should be adapted to the requirements of the jurisdiction in which the evidence is actually located.
Relevance and evidential purpose
Under section 2 of the EPOJ Act, the English Court has no power to order evidence to be taken that could not itself be ordered in English civil proceedings. That means that the documents sought must be relevant to the issues in dispute at trial.
The request should therefore identify the connection between the evidence sought and the issues that the foreign court will have to determine.
The distinction between evidence and general pre-trial discovery or investigation is particularly important. A Letter of Request should be directed towards obtaining evidence for the purposes of the proceedings, rather than enabling a party to investigate whether it might have a case.
The requesting party should also provide a proper evidential basis for believing that the requested documents exist and that the proposed witness is likely to possess relevant information. A speculative request based simply on the possibility that useful material might exist is unlikely to succeed.
Documents must be within the person’s possession, custody or power
The EPOJ Act imposes a limitation on documentary requests. The documents must appear to the court to be, or be likely to be, in the possession, custody or power of the person against whom the order is sought.
The request should identify the proposed respondent carefully.
For example, if documents are believed to be held by a corporate group, the applicant should not assume that documents held by one group company are automatically within the possession, custody or power of another. The evidence supporting the request should explain why the particular respondent is believed to have the relevant documents.
Timing and delays
The timing of a letter of request can have great importance and the request can be challenged if there are any issues with the timing.
This could relate to the timing of the request itself, or the timing in which any response would be provided or any delays in the process.
Seek advice quickly to make sure that the request, or the response is not hampered by timing issues.
Privilege and confidentiality
It is not uncommon for respondents to claim privilege or commercial confidentiality in relation to company documents that they would rather not be made public in foreign court proceedings.
While confidentiality issues may not be a complete challenge to the documents being obtained, it is possible that the respondent will convince the court to put in additional measures to protect the confidentiality of that information.
Protections should be sought with both jurisdictions in mind to ensure there is adequate protection to stop any challenges in this area.
Witness evidence
Letters of Request can be used to obtain witness evidence as well as documents.
The request should identify the proposed witness and explain why that person is expected to have relevant evidence. The questions or subject matter of the examination should be sufficiently focused to allow the receiving court to understand what evidence is being sought.
CPR 34.17 and Practice Direction 34A contemplate the filing of a list of questions or the subject matter of the questions to be put to the witness.
The English court can direct that the witness be examined before an examiner of the court or another suitable person. The examination will generally follow the procedure specified by the court, subject also to applicable English procedural requirements.
The resulting deposition is dealt with through the Senior Master and the Foreign Process Section before being transmitted for use in the foreign proceedings.
Letters of Request and pre-trial disclosure
Article 23 of the Hague Convention permits a Contracting State to declare that it will not accept Letters of Request issued for the purpose of obtaining pre-trial discovery of documents as known in common-law countries. The UK has made such a declaration, so it is important to understand the limits of letters of request when it comes to pre-trial disclosure.
The English courts have therefore taken a cautious approach to requests that resemble general discovery.
In Byju’s Alpha, Inc v OCI Limited & Ors [2025] EWHC 271 (KB), the request was refused because (among other reasons) it was deemed to be an illegitimate attempt to obtain pre-trial discovery type material rather than evidence for trial.
Accordingly, a request should be framed around identifiable evidence that is relevant to the issues to be determined, rather than around the wider proposition that documents may reveal whether a party has a case.
Conclusion
Letters of Request remain an important tool for obtaining evidence across international borders. Their effectiveness, however, depends heavily on careful drafting and a clear understanding of the law of the jurisdiction in which the evidence is located.
For requests directed to England and Wales, the key principles are specificity, relevance, evidential purpose and compliance with English procedural requirements. The request should identify the evidence sought with sufficient precision to enable the High Court to determine whether the statutory requirements are satisfied, while avoiding an attempt to use the procedure as a vehicle for general discovery or investigation.
The Hague Evidence Convention provides the international framework, but it does not remove the need to comply with the domestic law of the receiving jurisdiction.
Early involvement of lawyers in the receiving jurisdiction is always valuable. A request that is carefully tailored to the requirements of the receiving court is much more likely to avoid objections, amendments and delay.
At Rahman Ravelli we have significant experience in drafting Letters of Request and we can help you stay compliant, and obtain the evidence that you need for the underlying dispute. We also advise receiving parties on how to comply with incoming letters of request.
Source
- See Lord Diplock and Lord Wilberforce respectively in Rio Tinto Zinc Corp v Westinghouse Electric Corp [1978] AC 547 at 560
