BELIZE Law and Practice Contributed by: Nigel Ebanks and Darinka Muñoz, Barrow and Williams LLP
been unlawfully deprived of its property or prop- erty to which it has a legal entitlement. 5.3 Discovery in This Jurisdiction Generally, parties will be under a duty to disclose all information and documents that are directly relevant to the claim, confirmed by an order for standard disclosure in the case. In simple terms, “directly relevant” means tending to either prove or disprove one’s case. This obligation to dis- close all documents that are directly relevant is a continuing obligation on the parties. Oth- erwise, parties may be ordered to specifically disclose certain information by way of an order for “specific disclosure”. Parties wishing to rely on a document must disclose that document in the proceedings within which that party intends to use them. Part 28 of Belize’s Civil Procedure Rules (2005) contains detailed rules governing the disclosure and inspection of documents. 5.4 Alternatives to Discovery Mechanisms Generally, the process of disclosure needs to be adhered to in order for documents to be relied on in a High Court civil trial. A party will not be able to rely upon a document at trial if they have failed to disclose that document pursuant to the court’s order for disclosure. Alternatives to discovery include the use of inter- rogatories and notices to admit facts. Interroga- tories are written questions put to a party, which must be answered by affidavit. A notice to admit facts requires a party to admit the facts or part of the serving party’s case outlined in the notice. 5.5 Legal Privilege A party may claim privilege in the disclosure pro- cess and withhold documents from disclosure or
inspection on that basis. Legal professional priv- ilege covering certain correspondence between attorney and client features prominently in this area. A party lawfully possessing that privilege may also waive that privilege of their own voli- tion. Communications with in-house counsel qualify equally, provided that the nature of such documents supports the privilege being claimed. 5.6 Rules Disallowing Disclosure of a Document A person may apply to the High Court, without notice, for an order permitting that person not to disclose the existence of a document on the ground that disclosure of the existence of the document would damage the public interest. 6. Injunctive Relief 6.1 Circumstances of Injunctive Relief Belize law provides for the granting of injunctive relief. These orders are discretionary and include injunctions of various types, including prohibi- tory injunctions, mandatory injunctions, freezing orders and anti-suit injunctions. 6.2 Arrangements for Obtaining Urgent Injunctive Relief As mentioned in 4.7 Application/Motion Time- frame , in the case of applications for interim relief generally, Belize’s procedural rules provide for the hearing of applications on an urgent basis, including on a without notice basis. In appropri- ate circumstances, the hearing of urgent appli- cations brought without notice is constrained only by the availability of the High Court. These applications have been known to be heard within as little as a day or two.
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