Discovery
Physical and Site Discovery
Destructive testing includes disassembly, sectioning, chemical analysis consuming a sample, and stress testing to failure. Because it forecloses future examination in the original condition, courts require notice and typically an order.
Non-destructive alternatives must generally be exhausted first.
Alternative Names:
Destructive Examination, Alteration Testing
Why it Matters?
Proceeding without agreement or an order is spoliation, and courts have imposed serious sanctions where a party tested evidence unilaterally. The showing required generally addresses why the testing is necessary, why non-destructive alternatives are insufficient, and how the pre-testing condition will be documented. Sample preservation, where enough material exists for both sides to test, is the arrangement that resolves most disputes.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
What is required before destructive testing?
What resolves most disputes?
