In Servotronics Inc. v. Rolls-Royce PLC, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit deepened the circuit split on the question of whether 28 U.S.C. § 1782(a) authorizes district courts to order a person or entity to give testimony or documents for use in private foreign arbitrations. The Seventh Circuit sided with the Second and Fifth Circuits, holding that Section 1782(a) permits courts to provide discovery assistance only to state-sponsored foreign tribunals, not private international arbitrations. However, the Fourth Circuit took the opposite approach in a case involving the same parties and the same underlying private arbitration. And the Ninth Circuit may soon have to pick a side because the issue about the scope of Section 1782(a) is presented in a case before the court.

This Legal Update provides further detail on the clear disagreement in the circuits, a split which makes the issue ripe for review by the US Supreme Court. 

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