Access to evidence in Germany, Austria and Switzerland

Astrid Stadler

Chapter 1 in Access to Evidence in Civil Procedure, 2026, pp 5-29 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Rules on access to information and evidence are still very restrictive in German civil procedure law. The nemo contra se edere tenetur principle is quite strictly upheld by courts (unless there is mandatory EU law). Austrian civil procedure rules are, in many respects, very close to the German system, but go somewhat further when it comes to the production of documents and legal doctrine has adopted the principle that the parties have a general duty to give access to evidence. The 2011 Federal Swiss Code of Civil Procedure states a general obligation of the parties to co-operate and produce evidence. None of the three countries offer as a general rule on pre-litigation access to information that goes beyond securing evidence that might not be available later. With respect to the protection of trade secrets Swiss law is the most flexible.

Keywords: Duty to co-operation; Nemo contra se edere tenetur; Pre-litigation access to evidence; Trade secrets; Duty to give access to evidence (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035336128
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