Oklahoma Statutes
Title 12. Civil Procedure
§12-3226. General provisions governing discovery.

A. DISCOVERY METHODS; INITIAL DISCLOSURES.

1. DISCOVERY METHODS. Parties may obtain discovery regarding any matter that is relevant to any party's claim or defense by one or more of the following methods: Depositions upon oral examination or written questions; written interrogatories; production of documents or things or permission to enter upon land or other property, for inspection and other purposes; physical and mental examinations; requests for admission; authorizations for release of records; and otherwise by court order upon showing of good cause. Except as provided in this section or unless the court orders otherwise under this section, the frequency of use of these methods is not limited.
2. INITIAL DISCLOSURES.
B. DISCOVERY SCOPE AND LIMITS. Unless otherwise limited by order of the court in accordance with the Oklahoma Discovery Code, the scope of discovery is as follows:
1. IN GENERAL.
2. LIMITATIONS ON FREQUENCY AND EXTENT.
3. TRIAL PREPARATION: MATERIALS.
4. TRIAL PREPARATION: EXPERTS.
5. CLAIMS OF PRIVILEGE OR PROTECTION OF TRIAL PREPARATION MATERIALS.
C. PROTECTIVE ORDERS.
1. Upon motion by a party or by the person from whom discovery is sought, accompanied by a certification that the movant has in good faith conferred or attempted to confer, either in person or by telephone, with other affected parties in an effort to resolve the dispute without court action, and for good cause shown, the court in which the action is pending or on matters relating to a deposition, the district court in the county where the deposition is to be taken may enter any order which justice requires to protect a party or person from annoyance, harassment, embarrassment, oppression or undue delay, burden or expense, including one or more of the following:
2. If the motion for a protective order is denied in whole or in part, the court may, on such terms and conditions as are just, order that any party or person provide or permit discovery. The provisions of paragraph 4 of subsection A of Section 3237 of this title apply to the award of expenses incurred in relation to the motion. Any protective order of the court which has the effect of removing any material obtained by discovery from the public record shall contain the following:
3. No protective order entered after the filing and microfilming of documents of any kind shall be construed to require the microfilm record of such filing to be amended in any fashion.
4. The party or counsel which has received the protective order shall be responsible for promptly presenting the order to appropriate court clerk personnel for appropriate action.
5. All documents produced or testimony given under a protective order shall be retained in the office of counsel until required by the court to be filed in the case.
6. Counsel for the respective parties shall be responsible for informing witnesses, as necessary, of the contents of the protective order.
7. When a case is filed in which a party intends to seek a protective order removing material from the public record, the plaintiff(s) and defendant(s) shall be initially designated on the petition under pseudonym such as "John or Jane Doe", or "Roe", and the petition shall clearly indicate that the party designations are fictitious. The party seeking confidentiality or other order removing the case, in whole or in part, from the public record, shall immediately present application to the court, seeking instructions for the conduct of the case, including confidentiality of the records.
D. SEQUENCE AND TIMING OF DISCOVERY. Unless the parties stipulate or the court orders otherwise for the convenience of parties and witnesses and in the interests of justice, methods of discovery may be used in any sequence. The fact that a party is conducting discovery, whether by deposition or otherwise, shall not operate to delay discovery by any other party.
E. SUPPLEMENTATION OF RESPONSES. A party who has responded to a request for discovery with a response that was complete when it was made is under no duty to supplement the response to include information thereafter acquired, except as follows:
1. A party is under a duty seasonably to supplement the response with respect to any question directly addressed to:
2. A party is under a duty seasonably to amend a prior response to an interrogatory, request for production, or request for admission if the party obtains information upon the basis of which:
3. A duty to supplement responses may be imposed by order of the court, agreement of the parties, or at any time prior to trial through new requests for supplementation of prior responses.
F. DISCOVERY CONFERENCE. At any time after commencement of an action, the court may direct the attorneys for the parties to appear for a conference on the subject of discovery. The court shall do so upon motion by the attorney for any party if the motion includes:
1. A statement of the issues as they then appear;
2. A proposed plan and schedule of discovery;
3. Any limitations proposed to be placed on discovery;
4. Any other proposed orders with respect to discovery; and
5. A statement showing that the attorney making the motion has made a reasonable effort to reach agreement with opposing attorneys on the matters set forth in the motion.
Each party and his attorney are under a duty to participate in good faith in the framing of a discovery plan if a plan is proposed by the attorney for any party. Notice of the motion shall be served on all parties. Objections or additions to matters set forth in the motion shall be served not later than ten (10) days after service of the motion.
Following the discovery conference, the court shall enter an order tentatively identifying the issues for discovery purposes, establishing a plan and schedule for discovery, setting limitations on discovery, if any; and determining such other matters, including the allocation of expenses, as are necessary for the proper management of discovery in the action. In preparing the plan for discovery the court shall protect the parties from excessive or abusive use of discovery. An order shall be altered or amended whenever justice so requires.
Subject to the right of a party who properly moves for a discovery conference to prompt convening of the conference, the court may combine the discovery conference with a pretrial conference.
G. SIGNING OF DISCOVERY REQUESTS, RESPONSES AND OBJECTIONS. Every request for discovery, response or objection thereto made by a party represented by an attorney shall be signed by at least one of the party's attorneys of record in the party's individual name whose address shall be stated. A party who is not represented by an attorney shall sign the request, response or objection and state the party's address. The signature of the attorney or party constitutes a certification that the party has read the request, response or objection, and that it is:
1. To the best of the party's knowledge, information and belief formed after a reasonable inquiry consistent with the Oklahoma Discovery Code and warranted by existing law or a good faith argument for the extension, modification or reversal of existing law;
2. Interposed in good faith and not primarily to cause delay or for any other improper purpose; and
3. Not unreasonable or unduly burdensome or expensive, given the nature and complexity of the case, the discovery already had in the case, the amount in controversy, and other values at stake in the litigation. If a request, response or objection is not signed, it shall be deemed ineffective.
If a certification is made in violation of the provisions of this subsection, the court, upon motion or upon its own initiative, shall impose upon the person who made the certification, the party on whose behalf the request, response or objection is made, or both, an appropriate sanction, which may include an order to pay to the amount of the reasonable expenses occasioned thereby, including a reasonable attorney fee.
Added by Laws 1982, c. 198, § 3. Amended by Laws 1989, c. 129, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 1989. Renumbered from § 3203 of this title by Laws 1989, c. 129, § 14, eff. Nov. 1, 1989. Amended by Laws 1994, c. 343, § 13, eff. Sept. 1, 1994; Laws 1996, c. 61, § 3, eff. Nov. 1, 1996; Laws 1999, c. 293, § 21, eff. Nov. 1, 1999; Laws 2002, c. 468, § 73, eff. Nov. 1, 2002; Laws 2004, c. 519, § 3, eff. Nov. 1, 2004; Laws 2009, c. 228, § 20, eff. Nov. 1, 2009; Laws 2010, c. 50, § 4, eff. Nov. 1, 2010; Laws 2012, c. 9, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2012; Laws 2012, c. 278, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2012; Laws 2014, c. 192, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2014; Laws 2017, c. 378, § 3, eff. Nov. 1, 2017.
NOTE: Laws 2004, c. 368, § 13 repealed by Laws 2005, c. 1, § 8, emerg. eff. March 15, 2005.

Oklahoma Statutes Title 12. Civil Procedure §12-3226. General provisions governing discovery.

Oklahoma Statutes
Title 12. Civil Procedure
§12-3226. General provisions governing discovery.