Obtaining disclosure of information before court proceedings

Before commencing court proceedings, a claimant will need to ascertain the identity of the person to sue and whether they have a claim against them.

In commercial disputes the task can be complicated where the claimant has incomplete information and there are several persons involved, including innocent third parties.

For example, in cases of misappropriated funds, a prospective claimant may require information to identify the recipient and location of the funds and the accounts involved in the transfer of those funds.

To assist the claimant in its deliberations, a claimant may be able to obtain pre-litigation disclosure. We discuss below some of the principles and procedures.