At first the arrival of computers did not cause any major changes. A standalone computer was just a type of electronic filing cabinet. Special rules were created for the production of computer printouts to try and ensure that the computer was working properly and that false evidence was not presented. But as computers became linked up the question of what was 'discoverable' remained unanswered. The law said that all relevant documents in the 'possession, power, custody or control' of a party were discoverable. In theory this means that if there is a relevant document anywhere on a network which is within the 'power' or 'control' of the party to the litigation then it should be included in the list of discoverable documents and a copy supplied to the other party to the litigation if a request is made. But nobody has addressed this issue of networked workstations in reported litigation.

One reason for this has been that paper documents were still kept and filed. There was a tendency to ignore the computer and look at the paper copies of everything rather than the electronic copies. While a company may have had copies of all its outgoing documentation on its computer network the incoming documentation (pre-email) was in paper form and not electronic. Paper bundles of relevant discoverable documents were prepared by simply printing out the outgoing electronic documents, photocopying the original incoming documents and giving the other side this sheaf of paper. This fits into the structure of conventional legal offices and the courts. But it did not address the problem.

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