Discovery
Written Discovery
Interrogatories are written questions directed to a party, answered under oath by the party rather than by counsel. Federal practice presumptively limits them to twenty-five including discrete subparts.
Answers may be supplemented, and a party may in some circumstances produce business records in lieu of answering where the burden of deriving the answer is substantially the same for both sides.
Alternative Names:
ROGs, Written Interrogatories
Why it Matters?
Interrogatories are best used for information a party must compile rather than narrative explanation: identification of witnesses, computation of damages, insurance information, and the factual basis for specific contentions. Using them for open-ended narrative wastes limited questions and produces lawyer-drafted answers of little value. Contention interrogatories timed near the close of discovery are the exception, since they force a party to commit to a theory.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
How many interrogatories are permitted?
Who signs interrogatory answers?
