ITC Proposes New Limitations On Discovery

In a recent Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) promulgated for comment revisions to its Section 337 discovery procedures.¹ If implemented largely as proposed, which is likely given the ITC's history of follow-through with administrative rulemaking, these changes would make Section 337 more affordable to both complainants and respondents.

The ITC's Rules of Practice and Procedure are the analog to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Found principally in 19 C.F.R. § 210.1, et seq., these rules cover all aspects of agency adjudication, including protective orders; forms of pleadings; motions practice; discovery; hearings; intra-agency review (appeals); and remedies. The proposed discovery additions are to Section 210.27, which is the ITC equivalent to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26.