Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure | Rule 62 Production of Documents

Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure, Rule 62 Production of Documents

A. Scope. Any party may serve on any other party requests (1) to produce and permit the party making the request, or someone acting on the requester’s behalf, to inspect, copy, test or sample any designated documents or electronically stored information–including writings, drawings, graphs, charts, photographs, sound recordings, images, and other data or data compilations from which information can be obtained, translated into reasonable usable form when translation is practicably necessary – or to inspect, copy, test, or sample any designated tangible things that constitute or contain matters within the scope of Rule 51(B) and that are in the possession, custody, or control of the party upon whom the request is served; or (2) to permit entry upon designated land or other property in the possession or control of the party upon whom the request is served for the purpose of inspection and measuring, appraising, inventorying personal property, surveying, photographing, testing, or sampling the property or any designated object or operation thereon, within the scope of Rule 51(B).

B. Procedure and Limitations. The requests may, without leave of court, be served upon the petitioner after commencement of the action and upon any other party with or after service of the summons and petition upon that party. The requests shall set forth the items to be inspected, either by individual item or by specific category, and describe each item and specific category with reasonable particularity. The request may specify the form or forms in which electronically stored information is to be produced. The request(s) shall not, without leave of court, cumulatively include more than ten (10) distinct items or specific categories of items. Each request shall specify a reasonable time, place, and manner of making the inspection and performing the related acts. If a party believes that good cause exists for more than ten (10) distinct items or categories of items, that party shall consult with the party upon whom a request would be served and attempt to secure a written stipulation to that effect. The party upon whom a request is served shall serve a written response within forty (40) days after the service of the request, except that a respondent may serve a response within sixty (60) days after service of the summons and petition upon that respondent, or execution of a waiver of service by that respondent. The court may allow a shorter or longer time. The response shall state, with respect to each item or category, that inspection and related activities will be permitted as requested, unless the request is objected to, including an objection to the requested form or forms for producing electronically stored information, stating the reasons for objection. If objection is made to part of an item or category, the part shall be specified. If objection is made 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. The party submitting a request may move for an order under Rule 65(A) with respect to any objection to or other failure to respond to the request or any part thereof, or any failure to permit inspection as requested. Unless the parties otherwise agree, or the court otherwise orders:

1. A party who produced documents for inspection shall produce them as they are kept in the usual course of business or shall organize and label them to correspond with the categories in the request.

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 useable; and,

3. a party need not produce the same electronically stored information in more than one form.

C. Document Organization. A party who produces documents for inspection shall produce them as they are kept in the usual course of business or shall organize and label them to correspond with the categories in the request. The party who produces the documents shall also provide a list of the documents produced.

D. Persons not Parties. A person not a party to the action may be compelled to produce documents and things or to submit to an inspection as provided in this rule.