Do you have to meet and confer before filing a motion to compel?
Asked by: Prof. Irma Grady Jr. | Last update: June 29, 2025Score: 4.1/5 (16 votes)
A Motion to Compel can be filed only after you have made a formal discovery request under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 33, 34, 36, or 45 and you have met and conferred with your opponent (see section C below.)
Is a meet and confer required for a motion to compel?
Notably, for a motion to compel further discovery responses, there is a strict 45-day deadline to serve notice of motion to compel further discovery responses; as well as a strict meet and confer requirement prior to filing of the motion.
How do you file a motion to compel?
The notice of any motion to compel must state the following: 1) when and where the hearing will take place; 2) the grounds for the motion, including the specific discovery sought, the statutory authority, and reasons the response is deficient; and 3) the supporting papers (which must also be filed with the motion).
What happens if you don't meet and confer?
If the court finds that the opposing attorney acted unreasonably or in bad faith by not engaging in the meet and confer process, they might impose sanctions. This would be separate from the merits of the motion to compel itself, so even if the motion is denied, the issue of sanctions could still be considered.
What is the timeline for motion to compel?
Deadline 45 days: Motion to Compel must be filed within 45 days from insufficient response [See Above].
Discovery: What is a Motion to Compel?
Do you need a separate statement for motion to compel?
All discovery motions should include a notice of motion and motion. In addition, motions to compel further responses must include a separate statement and meet and confer declaration.
How serious is a motion to compel?
In the legal discovery process, a motion to compel plays a pivotal role when one party fails or refuses to comply with discovery requests from the opposing side. It is a formal legal request made to the court by the aggrieved party seeking enforcement of discovery obligations.
What triggers a meet and confer?
The need to provide employee organization(s) with advance notice and an opportunity to “meet and confer” is triggered any time the management of a department or sub-unit of a department plans to make a workplace change, and that change is likely to affect represented employees in some manner, even if the represented ...
What are the federal rules for meet and confer?
FRCP 26(f)(2) requires the parties to do five things at the meet and confer: (a) consider the nature and basis of their claims and defenses; (b) consider the possibilities for promptly settling or resolving the case; (c) make or arrange for the disclosures required by FRCP 26(a)(1); (d) discuss any issues about ...
How long do you have to respond to a meet and confer letter?
You've received discovery responses from opposing counsel, so what's your next step? Since you're a paralegal extraordinaire, you know that you'll only have 45 days to file and serve your motion to compel.
What happens if someone ignores a motion to compel?
If a party or party's officer, director, or managing agent fails to obey a discovery order, the court may issue further orders. A court must also order a disobedient party, the advising attorney, or both to pay expenses resulting from the failure to reply.
What is the compel process?
A motion to compel is a formal request made by one party in a legal case to the court, seeking an order that the opposing party must provide certain information or take specific actions within a specified timeframe.
Is a motion to compel a subpoena?
A motion to compel is the method by which a subpoenaing party may compel production, if the reporter refuses to comply with the demands of the subpoena.
How do you draft a motion to compel?
Elements to keep in mind while filing the Motion to Compel is to mention the nature of the case, identify the question that needs to be answered or the object or document that is needed and explain how it relates to the case, attach the other party's written refusal to make available the information or object, make it ...
What is included in a motion to compel?
(c) Contents of the Motion
A motion to compel a response to discovery must include: the nature of the questions or request at issue; the response or objections of the party upon whom the request was served; arguments in support of the motion; and.
How do you fight a motion to compel?
You need to give the court a reason to deny the other side's motion to compel. There are many different reasons you could give. Take out your Response to the discovery request. You should have identified reasons in your Response for why you weren't turning over certain information.
Is meet and confer required for motions to compel further answers?
The “meet and confer” requirement is your opportunity to demonstrate to the court that you are making a “reasonable and good faith attempt at an informal resolution.” California Code of Civil Procedure (CCP) § 2016.040. A sample “meet and confer” letter is included at the end of this Guide.
What is a meet and confer requirement?
(a) Meet and confer
During this time, parties must discuss and make a good faith attempt to settle all issues, even if a complete settlement is not possible and only conditional agreements are made. The requirement to meet and confer does not apply to cases involving domestic violence.
Can you meet and confer by email?
The mere sending of a written electronic, or voice mail communication, however, does not satisfy a requirement to “meet and confer” or to “confer.” Rather, this requirement can be satisfied only through direct dialogue and discussion—either in a face to face meeting or in a telephone conversation.
What are the federal rules of civil procedure meet and confer?
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 37 obligates a party to certify, along with its motion to compel, that it “in good faith conferred or attempted to confer with the person or party failing to make disclosure or discovery in an effort to obtain it without court action.”
Does an informal discovery conference toll the motion to compel deadline?
(2) If an informal discovery conference is granted or ordered, the court may toll the deadline for filing a discovery motion or make any other appropriate discovery order.
How to prepare for meet and confer?
How To Be Prepared? Of course, you'll want to go into the meet and confer with a strong knowledge of your case and its data, as well as your own objectives for the eDiscovery process. In addition, be ready to ask questions about several areas, such as the preservation strategy for potentially responsive information.
What happens if someone doesn't respond to a motion to compel?
Courts enforce their orders by imposing sanctions on a party who fails to comply. Sanctions can be monetary, such as requiring one party to pay the other parties attorneys' fees and/or imposing a monetary fine, or they can hamper a party's ability to put on their case.
How long do you have to file motion to compel in federal court?
The federal rules do not contain any time limit in which a motion to compel discovery must be filed. But you should check your court's local rules and even the judge's standing order. For instance, in the Northern District of California you must move to compel within seven days of the close of discovery.
What is a good faith letter for discovery?
This letter is often called a good faith letter. And it is needed under many courts' rules before you can file a motion to compel discovery if the other party ignores your requests or provides evasive responses or move for sanctions if your opponent refuses to comply with the court's discovery order.