Fed. R. Civ. P. 26

(a) REQUIRED DISCLOSURES.

38 Rule 26 FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

(1) Initial Disclosure.

(A) In General. Except as exempted by Rule 26(a)(1)(B) or

as otherwise stipulated or ordered by the court, a party

must, without awaiting a discovery request, provide to the

other parties:

(i) the name and, if known, the address and telephone

number of each individual likely to have discoverable

information—along with the subjects of that information—that the disclosing party may use to support its

claims or defenses, unless the use would be solely for

impeachment;

(ii) a copy—or a description by category and location—of all documents, electronically stored information, and tangible things that the disclosing party has

in its possession, custody, or control and may use to

support its claims or defenses, unless the use would be

solely for impeachment;

(iii) a computation of each category of damages

claimed by the disclosing party—who must also make

available for inspection and copying as under Rule 34

the documents or other evidentiary material, unless

privileged or protected from disclosure, on which each

computation is based, including materials bearing on

the nature and extent of injuries suffered; and

(iv) for inspection and copying as under Rule 34, any

insurance agreement under which an insurance business may be liable to satisfy all or part of a possible

judgment in the action or to indemnify or reimburse

for payments made to satisfy the judgment.

(B) Proceedings Exempt from Initial Disclosure. The following proceedings are exempt from initial disclosure:

(i) an action for review on an administrative record;

(ii) a forfeiture action in rem arising from a federal

statute;

(iii) a petition for habeas corpus or any other proceeding to challenge a criminal conviction or sentence;

(iv) an action brought without an attorney by a person in the custody of the United States, a state, or a

state subdivision;

(v) an action to enforce or quash an administrative

summons or subpoena;

(vi) an action by the United States to recover benefit

payments;

(vii) an action by the United States to collect on a

student loan guaranteed by the United States;

(viii) a proceeding ancillary to a proceeding in another court; and

(ix) an action to enforce an arbitration award.

(C) Time for Initial Disclosures—In General. A party must

make the initial disclosures at or within 14 days after the

parties’ Rule 26(f) conference unless a different time is set

by stipulation or court order, or unless a party objects

during the conference that initial disclosures are not appropriate in this action and states the objection in the

proposed discovery plan. In ruling on the objection, the

39 Rule 26 FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

court must determine what disclosures, if any, are to be

made and must set the time for disclosure.

(D) Time for Initial Disclosures—For Parties Served or

Joined Later. A party that is first served or otherwise

joined after the Rule 26(f) conference must make the initial disclosures within 30 days after being served or joined,

unless a different time is set by stipulation or court order.

(E) Basis for Initial Disclosure; Unacceptable Excuses. A

party must make its initial disclosures based on the information then reasonably available to it. A party is not excused from making its disclosures because it has not fully

investigated the case or because it challenges the sufficiency of another party’s disclosures or because another

party has not made its disclosures.

(2) Disclosure of Expert Testimony.

(A) In General. In addition to the disclosures required by

Rule 26(a)(1), a party must disclose to the other parties the

identity of any witness it may use at trial to present evidence under Federal Rule of Evidence 702, 703, or 705.

(B) Witnesses Who Must Provide a Written Report. Unless

otherwise stipulated or ordered by the court, this disclosure must be accompanied by a written report—prepared

and signed by the witness—if the witness is one retained or

specially employed to provide expert testimony in the case

or one whose duties as the party’s employee regularly involve giving expert testimony. The report must contain:

(i) a complete statement of all opinions the witness

will express and the basis and reasons for them;

(ii) the facts or data considered by the witness in

forming them;

(iii) any exhibits that will be used to summarize or

support them;

(iv) the witness’s qualifications, including a list of

all publications authored in the previous 10 years;

(v) a list of all other cases in which, during the previous 4 years, the witness testified as an expert at trial

or by deposition; and

(vi) a statement of the compensation to be paid for

the study and testimony in the case.

(C) Witnesses Who Do Not Provide a Written Report. Unless

otherwise stipulated or ordered by the court, if the witness

is not required to provide a written report, this disclosure

must state:

(i) the subject matter on which the witness is expected to present evidence under Federal Rule of Evidence 702, 703, or 705; and

(ii) a summary of the facts and opinions to which the

witness is expected to testify.

(D) Time to Disclose Expert Testimony. A party must make

these disclosures at the times and in the sequence that the

court orders. Absent a stipulation or a court order, the disclosures must be made:

(i) at least 90 days before the date set for trial or for

the case to be ready for trial; or

(ii) if the evidence is intended solely to contradict or

rebut evidence on the same subject matter identified

40 Rule 26 FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

by another party under Rule 26(a)(2)(B) or (C), within

30 days after the other party’s disclosure.

(E) Supplementing the Disclosure. The parties must supplement these disclosures when required under Rule 26(e).

(3) Pretrial Disclosures.

(A) In General. In addition to the disclosures required by

Rule 26(a)(1) and (2), a party must provide to the other parties and promptly file the following information about the

evidence that it may present at trial other than solely for

impeachment:

(i) the name and, if not previously provided, the address and telephone number of each witness—separately identifying those the party expects to present

and those it may call if the need arises;

(ii) the designation of those witnesses whose testimony the party expects to present by deposition and,

if not taken stenographically, a transcript of the pertinent parts of the deposition; and

(iii) an identification of each document or other exhibit, including summaries of other evidence—separately identifying those items the party expects to

offer and those it may offer if the need arises.

(B) Time for Pretrial Disclosures; Objections. Unless the

court orders otherwise, these disclosures must be made at

least 30 days before trial. Within 14 days after they are

made, unless the court sets a different time, a party may

serve and promptly file a list of the following objections:

any objections to the use under Rule 32(a) of a deposition

designated by another party under Rule 26(a)(3)(A)(ii); and

any objection, together with the grounds for it, that may

be made to the admissibility of materials identified under

Rule 26(a)(3)(A)(iii). An objection not so made—except for

one under Federal Rule of Evidence 402 or 403—is waived

unless excused by the court for good cause.

(4) Form of Disclosures. Unless the court orders otherwise, all

disclosures under Rule 26(a) must be in writing, signed, and

served.

(b) DISCOVERY SCOPE AND LIMITS.

(1) Scope in General. Unless otherwise limited by court order,

the scope of discovery is as follows: Parties may obtain discovery regarding any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to any

party’s claim or defense and proportional to the needs of the

case, considering the importance of the issues at stake in the

action, the amount in controversy, the parties’ relative access

to relevant information, the parties’ resources, the importance of the discovery in resolving the issues, and whether the

burden or expense of the proposed discovery outweighs its

likely benefit. Information within this scope of discovery need

not be admissible in evidence to be discoverable.

(2) Limitations on Frequency and Extent.

(A) When Permitted. By order, the court may alter the

limits in these rules on the number of depositions and interrogatories or on the length of depositions under Rule 30.

By order or local rule, the court may also limit the number of requests under Rule 36.

41 Rule 26 FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

(B) Specific Limitations on Electronically Stored Information. A party need not provide discovery of electronically

stored information from sources that the party identifies

as not reasonably accessible because of undue burden or

cost. On motion to compel discovery or for a protective

order, the party from whom discovery is sought must show

that the information is not reasonably accessible because

of undue burden or cost. If that showing is made, the court

may nonetheless order discovery from such sources if the

requesting party shows good cause, considering the limitations of Rule 26(b)(2)(C). The court may specify conditions

for the discovery.

(C) When Required. On motion or on its own, the court

must limit the frequency or extent of discovery otherwise

allowed by these rules or by local rule if it determines

that:

(i) the discovery sought is unreasonably cumulative

or duplicative, or can be obtained from some other

source that is more convenient, less burdensome, or

less expensive;

(ii) the party seeking discovery has had ample opportunity to obtain the information by discovery in the

action; or

(iii) the proposed discovery is outside the scope permitted by Rule 26(b)(1).

(3) Trial Preparation: Materials.

(A) Documents and Tangible Things. Ordinarily, a party

may not discover documents and tangible things that are

prepared in anticipation of litigation or for trial by or for

another party or its representative (including the other

party’s attorney, consultant, surety, indemnitor, insurer,

or agent). But, subject to Rule 26(b)(4), those materials

may be discovered if:

(i) they are otherwise discoverable under Rule

26(b)(1); and

(ii) the party shows that it has substantial need for

the materials to prepare its case and cannot, without

undue hardship, obtain their substantial equivalent by

other means.

(B) Protection Against Disclosure. If the court orders discovery of those materials, it must protect against disclosure of the mental impressions, conclusions, opinions, or

legal theories of a party’s attorney or other representative

concerning the litigation.

(C) Previous Statement. Any party or other person may,

on request and without the required showing, obtain the

person’s own previous statement about the action or its

subject matter. If the request is refused, the person may

move for a court order, and Rule 37(a)(5) applies to the

award of expenses. A previous statement is either:

(i) a written statement that the person has signed or

otherwise adopted or approved; or

(ii) a contemporaneous stenographic, mechanical,

electrical, or other recording—or a transcription of

42 Rule 26 FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

it—that recites substantially verbatim the person’s

oral statement.

(4) Trial Preparation: Experts.

(A) Deposition of an Expert Who May Testify. A party may

depose any person who has been identified as an expert

whose opinions may be presented at trial. If Rule

26(a)(2)(B) requires a report from the expert, the deposition

may be conducted only after the report is provided.

(B) Trial-Preparation Protection for Draft Reports or Disclosures. Rules 26(b)(3)(A) and (B) protect drafts of any report

or disclosure required under Rule 26(a)(2), regardless of the

form in which the draft is recorded.

(C) Trial-Preparation Protection for Communications Between a Party’s Attorney and Expert Witnesses. Rules

26(b)(3)(A) and (B) protect communications between the

party’s attorney and any witness required to provide a report under Rule 26(a)(2)(B), regardless of the form of the

communications, except to the extent that the communications:

(i) relate to compensation for the expert’s study or

testimony;

(ii) identify facts or data that the party’s attorney

provided and that the expert considered in forming the

opinions to be expressed; or

(iii) identify assumptions that the party’s attorney

provided and that the expert relied on in forming the

opinions to be expressed.

(D) Expert Employed Only for Trial Preparation. Ordinarily, a party may not, by interrogatories or deposition,

discover facts known or opinions held by an expert who

has been retained or specially employed by another party

in anticipation of litigation or to prepare for trial and who

is not expected to be called as a witness at trial. But a

party may do so only:

(i) as provided in Rule 35(b); or

(ii) on showing exceptional circumstances under

which it is impracticable for the party to obtain facts

or opinions on the same subject by other means.

(E) Payment. Unless manifest injustice would result, the

court must require that the party seeking discovery:

(i) pay the expert a reasonable fee for time spent in

responding to discovery under Rule 26(b)(4)(A) or (D);

and

(ii) for discovery under (D), also pay the other party

a fair portion of the fees and expenses it reasonably incurred in obtaining the expert’s facts and opinions.

(5) Claiming Privilege or Protecting Trial-Preparation Materials.

(A) Information Withheld. When a party withholds information otherwise discoverable by claiming that the information is privileged or subject to protection as trial-preparation material, the party must:

(i) expressly make the claim; and

(ii) describe the nature of the documents, communications, or tangible things not produced or disclosed—and do so in a manner that, without revealing

43 Rule 26 FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

information itself privileged or protected, will enable

other parties to assess the claim.

(B) Information Produced. If information produced in discovery is subject to a claim of privilege or of protection as

trial-preparation material, the party making the claim

may notify any party that received the information of the

claim and the basis for it. After being notified, a party

must promptly return, sequester, or destroy the specified

information and any copies it has; must not use or disclose

the information until the claim is resolved; must take reasonable steps to retrieve the information if the party disclosed it before being notified; and may promptly present

the information to the court under seal for a determination of the claim. The producing party must preserve the

information until the claim is resolved.

(c) PROTECTIVE ORDERS.

(1) In General. A party or any person from whom discovery

is sought may move for a protective order in the court where

the action is pending—or as an alternative on matters relating

to a deposition, in the court for the district where the deposition will be taken. The motion must include a certification

that the movant has in good faith conferred or attempted to

confer with other affected parties in an effort to resolve the

dispute without court action. The court may, for good cause,

issue an order to protect a party or person from annoyance,

embarrassment, oppression, or undue burden or expense, including one or more of the following:

(A) forbidding the disclosure or discovery;

(B) specifying terms, including time and place or the allocation of expenses, for the disclosure or discovery;

(C) prescribing a discovery method other than the one

selected by the party seeking discovery;

(D) forbidding inquiry into certain matters, or limiting

the scope of disclosure or discovery to certain matters;

(E) designating the persons who may be present while

the discovery is conducted;

(F) requiring that a deposition be sealed and opened only

on court order;

(G) requiring that a trade secret or other confidential research, development, or commercial information not be revealed or be revealed only in a specified way; and

(H) requiring that the parties simultaneously file specified documents or information in sealed envelopes, to be

opened as the court directs.

(2) Ordering Discovery. If a motion for a protective order is

wholly or partly denied, the court may, on just terms, order

that any party or person provide or permit discovery.

(3) Awarding Expenses. Rule 37(a)(5) applies to the award of

expenses.

(d) TIMING AND SEQUENCE OF DISCOVERY.

(1) Timing. A party may not seek discovery from any source

before the parties have conferred as required by Rule 26(f), except in a proceeding exempted from initial disclosure under

Rule 26(a)(1)(B), or when authorized by these rules, by stipulation, or by court order.

44 Rule 26 FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

(2) Early Rule 34 Requests.

(A) Time to Deliver. More than 21 days after the summons

and complaint are served on a party, a request under Rule

34 may be delivered:

(i) to that party by any other party, and

(ii) by that party to any plaintiff or to any other

party that has been served.

(B) When Considered Served. The request is considered to

have been served at the first Rule 26(f) conference.

(3) Sequence. Unless the parties stipulate or the court orders

otherwise for the parties’ and witnesses’ convenience and in

the interests of justice:

(A) methods of discovery may be used in any sequence;

and

(B) discovery by one party does not require any other

party to delay its discovery.

(e) SUPPLEMENTING DISCLOSURES AND RESPONSES.

(1) In General. A party who has made a disclosure under Rule

26(a)—or who has responded to an interrogatory, request for

production, or request for admission—must supplement or correct its disclosure or response:

(A) in a timely manner if the party learns that in some

material respect the disclosure or response is incomplete

or incorrect, and if the additional or corrective information has not otherwise been made known to the other parties during the discovery process or in writing; or

(B) as ordered by the court.

(2) Expert Witness. For an expert whose report must be disclosed under Rule 26(a)(2)(B), the party’s duty to supplement

extends both to information included in the report and to information given during the expert’s deposition. Any additions

or changes to this information must be disclosed by the time

the party’s pretrial disclosures under Rule 26(a)(3) are due.

(f) Conference of the Parties; Planning for

Discovery.

(1) Conference Timing. Except in a proceeding exempted from

initial disclosure under Rule 26(a)(1)(B) or when the court orders otherwise, the parties must confer as soon as practicable—and in any event at least 21 days before a scheduling

conference is to be held or a scheduling order is due under

Rule 16(b).

(2) Conference Content; Parties’ Responsibilities. In conferring,

the parties must consider the nature and basis of their claims

and defenses and the possibilities for promptly settling or resolving the case; make or arrange for the disclosures required

by Rule 26(a)(1); discuss any issues about preserving discoverable information; and develop a proposed discovery plan. The

attorneys of record and all unrepresented parties that have appeared in the case are jointly responsible for arranging the

conference, for attempting in good faith to agree on the proposed discovery plan, and for submitting to the court within

14 days after the conference a written report outlining the

plan. The court may order the parties or attorneys to attend

the conference in person.

(3) Discovery Plan. A discovery plan must state

the parties’ views and proposals on:

(A) what changes should be made in the timing, form, or

requirement for disclosures under Rule 26(a), including a

statement of when initial disclosures were made or will be

made;

(B) the subjects on which discovery may be needed, when

discovery should be completed, and whether discovery

should be conducted in phases or be limited to or focused

on particular issues;

(C) any issues about disclosure, discovery, or preservation of electronically stored information, including the

form or forms in which it should be produced;

(D) any issues about claims of privilege

or of protection as trial-preparation

materials, including the timing and

method for complying with

Rule 26(b)(5)(A) and—if the parties

agree on a procedure to assert these

claims after produc tion—whether to

ask the court to include their

agreement in an order under Federal

Rule of Evidence 502;

(E) what changes should be made in the limitations on

discovery imposed under these rules or by local rule, and

what other limitations should be imposed; and

(F) any other orders that the court should issue under

Rule 26(c) or under Rule 16(b) and (c).

(4) Expedited Schedule. If necessary to comply with its expedited schedule for Rule 16(b) conferences, a court may by local

rule:

(A) require the parties’ conference to occur less than 21

days before the scheduling conference is held or a scheduling order is due under Rule 16(b); and

(B) require the written report outlining the discovery

plan to be filed less than 14 days after the parties’ conference, or excuse the parties from submitting a written

report and permit them to report orally on their discovery

plan at the Rule 16(b) conference.

(g) SIGNING DISCLOSURES AND DISCOVERY REQUESTS, RESPONSES,

AND OBJECTIONS.

(1) Signature Required; Effect of Signature. Every disclosure

under Rule 26(a)(1) or (a)(3) and every discovery request, response, or objection must be signed by at least one attorney

of record in the attorney’s own name—or by the party personally, if unrepresented—and must state the signer’s address, e-

mail address, and telephone number. By signing, an attorney

or party certifies that to the best of the person’s knowledge,

information, and belief formed after a reasonable inquiry:

(A) with respect to a disclosure, it is complete and correct as of the time it is made; and

(B) with respect to a discovery request, response, or objection, it is:

(i) consistent with these rules and warranted by existing law or by a nonfrivolous argument for extending, modifying, or reversing existing law, or for establishing new law;

(ii) not interposed for any improper purpose, such as

to harass, cause unnecessary delay, or needlessly increase the cost of litigation; and

46 Rule 27 FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

(iii) neither unreasonable nor unduly burdensome or

expensive, considering the needs of the case, prior discovery in the case, the amount in controversy, and the

importance of the issues at stake in the action.

(2) Failure to Sign. Other parties have no duty to act on an

unsigned disclosure, request, response, or objection until it is

signed, and the court must strike it unless a signature is

promptly supplied after the omission is called to the attorney’s or party’s attention.

(3) Sanction for Improper Certification. If a certification violates this rule without substantial justification, the court, on

motion or on its own, must impose an appropriate sanction on

the signer, the party on whose behalf the signer was acting, or

both. The sanction may include an order to pay the reasonable

expenses, including attorney’s fees, caused by the violation.

(As amended Dec. 27, 1946, eff. Mar. 19, 1948; Jan. 21, 1963, eff. July

1, 1963; Feb. 28, 1966, eff. July 1, 1966; Mar. 30, 1970, eff. July 1, 1970;

Apr. 29, 1980, eff. Aug. 1, 1980; Apr. 28, 1983, eff. Aug. 1, 1983; Mar.

2, 1987, eff. Aug. 1, 1987; Apr. 22, 1993, eff. Dec. 1, 1993; Apr. 17, 2000,

eff. Dec. 1, 2000; Apr. 12, 2006, eff. Dec. 1, 2006; Apr. 30, 2007, eff. Dec.

1, 2007; Apr. 28, 2010, eff. Dec. 1, 2010; Apr. 29, 2015, eff. Dec. 1, 2015; Apr. 23, 2025, eff. Dec. 1, 2025.)