Section 1782 of Title 28 of the U.S. Code—entitled “Assistance to foreign and international tribunals and to litigants before such tribunals”—permits a party to foreign (i.e., non-U.S.) proceedings to apply directly to a U.S. federal court for an order requiring “a person” who “resides or is found” in the United States to “give his testimony or statement or to produce a document or other thing for use in a proceeding in a foreign or international tribunal.”
Section 1782 can be a powerful tool for parties to foreign proceedings, enabling them to apply directly to a U.S. court to seek evidence they might not be able to obtain in any other way. Moreover, U.S. courts have rejected several attempts to impose restrictions of the use of §1782. Thus, it is not necessary that foreign proceeding be pending at the time of the §1782 application, but rather, it is sufficient that it be in “reasonable contemplation.” Intel v. AMD, 542 U.S. 241, 259 (2004). In addition, it is not necessary to obtain the permission of the foreign tribunal before making a §1782 application. In re Malev, 964 F.2d 97, 101 (2d Cir. 1992).
