Cost shifting reallocates discovery expense from the producing to the requesting party. Courts consider the availability of the information from other sources, its importance to the issues, the parties' resources, and the total cost relative to the amount in controversy.
It is applied most often to inaccessible sources such as backup tapes and legacy systems.
Alternative Names:
Cost Shifting, Cost Allocation (Discovery)
Why it Matters?
Cost shifting is granted less often than producing parties hope, and the motions that succeed are supported by actual cost documentation rather than assertions of burden. Vendor estimates, custodian and volume counts, and projected review hours are what courts respond to. Partial shifting is more common than full, and offering to bear a share signals reasonableness in a way a demand for full shifting does not.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
When do courts shift discovery costs?
What evidence supports a cost shifting motion?
