Also known as: ease of access to proof · access to sources of proof · access to evidence · proof accessibility
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A private interest factor in forum non conveniens analysis that weighs the location and availability of documents, records, and physical evidence relevant to the litigation.
Apex's counsel Morgan directed engineers to delete raw simulation files after NovaSat filed suit over a failed launch. The deleted files were stored on servers in another district. When defendants moved to transfer, the court noted that the destruction had already impaired the plaintiff's ability to obtain proof in the original forum.
Gulf Oil sued in New York after a spill in Virginia. Most repair records and eyewitness documents remained in Virginia. The court weighed the relative ease of access to those sources and dismissed the case so the Virginia forum could handle the proof more efficiently.
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Reyno sued American manufacturers in Pennsylvania after a Scottish crash. Design documents and testing records sat in the United States while wreckage and maintenance logs remained in Scotland. The court evaluated whether the foreign location of key physical proof made the Scottish forum more convenient.
Miller sued in Louisiana after a dredging accident off Texas. Payroll records and vessel logs were kept at the Texas headquarters. The court assessed whether the concentration of those sources in Texas justified transferring the case away from the plaintiff's chosen forum.
It is one of the private interest factors a court balances when deciding whether to dismiss or transfer a case. The court examines where relevant documents and physical evidence are located and how difficult it would be for the parties to obtain them in the chosen forum. When most sources lie elsewhere, this factor supports dismissal or transfer.
Yes. When proof becomes unavailable because it was destroyed or is otherwise inaccessible, the court may weigh that reduced availability in the original forum and find the factor favors transfer to a more convenient district where remaining sources can be obtained.
The court compares the volume and importance of proof in each location. If the bulk of critical documents and witnesses are concentrated in another district, that factor weighs in favor of transfer even if some evidence remains in the original forum.
…479 F. Supp., at 732. This characterization may be somewhat exaggerated. Particularly with respect to the question of relative ease of access to sources of proof, the private interests point in both directions. As respondent emphasizes, records concerning the design, manufacture, and testing of the propeller and plane are located in the United…