Irish Court of Appeal Outlines Importance of Litigation Holds For Discovery

Irish Court of Appeal Outlines Importance of “Litigation Holds” for Discovery

The Court of Appeal has confirmed that a party to civil proceedings in this jurisdiction must take reasonable steps to preserve relevant documents, clarifying whether and in what circumstances a party should implement (and a party’s solicitors might be obliged to advise) a so-called “litigation hold”. The Court advised that where relevant documentation is lost by reason of a litigant’s failure to take reasonable steps to preserve it, that litigant must, at a minimum, expect to be the subject of criticism.