Letters Rogatory

An old edition of the Black’s Law Dictionary defines Letters Rogatory as “A request by one court of another court in an independent jurisdiction that a witness be examined upon interrogatories sent with the request.”

Legal Materials

The U.S. State Department posts instructions on how to prepare Letters Rogatory andhow that information applies in individual countries.

The Inter-American Convention on Letters Rogatory governs the use of Letters Rogatory between the U.S., Spain and most countries in Central and South America. The Convention and a list of signatories is posted by the Organization of American States.

Most countries that signed the Inter-American Convention have also signed theAdditional Protocol to the Inter-American Convention on Letters Rogatory.

In relation to Inter-American Treaties, Conventions and Agreements adopted within the framework of the OAS

The Organization of American States (a list of Members of the Organization of American States is here) adopted the following international instruments regarding, in Judicial Cooperation, Rogatory Letters:

• Inter-American Convention on Letters Rogatory,
• Additional Protocol to the Inter-American Convention on Letters Rogatory.

See Also

International Law
Treaties
Inter-American Convention on Letters Rogatory