Rule 34. Production of documents and things and entry upon land
for inspection and other purposes.
(a) Scope.
(a)(1) Any party may serve on any
other party a request to produce and permit the requesting party to inspect, copy,
test or sample any designated discoverable documents, electronically stored
information or tangible things (including writings, drawings, graphs, charts,
photographs, sound recordings, images, and other data or data compilations
stored in any medium from which information can be obtained, translated, if
necessary, by the respondent into reasonably usable form) in the possession or
control of the responding party.
(a)(2) Any party may serve on any
other party a request to permit entry upon designated property in the
possession or control of the responding party for the purpose of inspecting,
measuring, surveying, photographing, testing, or sampling the property or any
designated discoverable object or operation on the property.
(b) Procedure and limitations.
(b)(1) The request must identify the
items to be inspected by individual item or by category, and describe each item
and category with reasonable particularity. The request must specify a
reasonable date, time, place, and manner of making the inspection and
performing the related acts. The request may specify the form or forms in which
electronically stored information is to be produced.
(b)(2) The responding party must
serve a written response within 28 days after service of the request. The
responding party must restate each request before responding to it. The
response must state, with respect to each item or category, that inspection and
related acts will be permitted as requested, or that the request is objected
to. If the party objects to a request, the party must state the reasons for the
objection with specificity. Any reason not stated is
waived unless excused by the court for good cause. An objection must state by
individual item or by category whether any responsive items are being withheld on
the basis of that objection. An objection that states the terms that have
controlled a search for responsive items qualifies as a statement that items
outside of the search terms may have been withheld. The party must identify and
permit inspection of items responsive to any part of a request that is not
objectionable. If the party objects to the requested form or forms for
producing electronically stored information—or if no form was specified in the
request—the responding party must state the form or forms it intends to use.
(c) Form of documents and
electronically stored information.
(c)(1) A party who produces documents
for inspection must produce them as they are kept in the usual course of
business or must organize and label them to correspond with the categories in
the request.
(c)(2) If a request does not specify
the form or forms for producing electronically stored information, a responding
party must produce the information in a form or forms in which it is ordinarily
maintained or in a form or forms that are reasonably usable.
(c)(3) A party need not produce the
same electronically stored information in more than one form.
Effective May
1, 2017