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Rule 196.3. Production (Aug. 1998)
TEXT
(a) Time and place of production. Subject to any objections stated in the response, the responding party must produce the requested documents or tangible things within the person's possession, custody or control at either the time and place requested or the time and place stated in the response, unless otherwise agreed by the parties or ordered by the court, and must provide the requesting party a reasonable opportunity to inspect them.
(b) Copies. The responding party may produce copies in lieu of originals unless a question is raised as to the authenticity of the original or in the circumstances it would be unfair to produce copies in lieu of originals. If originals are produced, the responding party is entitled to retain the originals while the requesting party inspects and copies them.
(c) Organization. The responding party must either produce documents and tangible things as they are kept in the usual course of business or organize and label them to correspond with the categories in the request.
Aug. 4, 1998, eff. Jan. 1, 1999.
| Prior Amendments | Future Amendments |
|---|---|
| Nov. 9, 1998, eff. Jan. 1, 1999 |
Notes and Comments
Comments to 1999 change:
1. "Document and tangible things" are defined in Rule I 92.3(b).
2. A party requesting sampling or testing must describe the procedure with sufficient specificity to enable the responding party to make any appropriate objections.
3. A party requesting production of magnetic or electronic data must specifically request the data, specify the form in which it wants the data produced, and specify any extraordinary steps for retrieval and translation. Otherwise, the responding party need only produce the data available in the ordinary course of business in reasonably usable form.
4. The rule clarifies how the expenses of production are to be allocated absent a court order to the contrary.
5. The obligation of parties to produce documents within their possession, custody or control is explained in Rule 192.3(b).
6. Parties may request production and inspection of documents and tangible things from nonparties under Rule 205.3.
7. Rule 196.3(b) is based on Tex. R. Evid. 1003.
8. Rule 196.1 (c) is merely a notice requirement and does not expand the scope of discovery of a nonparty's medical records.
AMENDMENTS