What happens if a motion to compel discovery is ignored?

Asked by: Kacey Bernhard  |  Last update: November 9, 2025
Score: 4.7/5 (67 votes)

If the court grants your attorney's motion to compel discovery, the other party must comply with the judge's order and supply the requested materials within any deadline specified. If they fail to do so, sanctions can be issued in varying levels of severity depending on how egregious their noncompliance was.

What happens if someone doesn't respond to a motion to compel?

If the opposing party does not answer, then you have to file a motion to compel the opposing party to respond. The party must answer your request if the court orders them to. If the party still does not answer, they can be held in contempt of court and/or a default judgment can be issued in your favor.

What consequences can result from a refusal to cooperate with an order compelling discovery?

(b) Failure to Comply with a Court Order. (1) Sanctions Sought in the District Where the Deposition Is Taken. If the court where the discovery is taken orders a deponent to be sworn or to answer a question and the deponent fails to obey, the failure may be treated as contempt of court.

What are the consequences of a motion to compel?

If a motion to compel discovery is granted, the prosecution is legally obligated to provide the requested evidence. Failure to comply can lead to various consequences, including sanctions, case dismissal, or a reversal of a conviction on appeal due to the violation of discovery rights.

What is the deadline for motion to compel after discovery?

The Court may reject your Motion to Compel as untimely if you file it after your discovery deadline or long after you became aware of the insufficient response to your discovery request.

The truth about Motions to Compel

40 related questions found

How long do you have to respond to motion to compel?

Notice of a motion to compel further responses must be made within 45 days of the service of the “verified response.” (See Code Civ. Proc., §§ 2030.300, subd. (c) [interrogatories], 2031.310, subd. (c) [requests for production], 2033.290, subd.

How to win a motion to compel?

Some of the simple tactics to follow while filing a motion to compel:
  1. Act in good Faith.
  2. Thorough Knowledge of the Case.
  3. Limit citing voluminous authorities.
  4. Avoid Personal Attacks.

Is motion to compel good or bad?

Motions to compel are often necessary to set the tone in your case and acquire the documents and information you need to win your case. Grounds: When a party who has propounded discovery believes the responses are inadequate, the propounding party may move for a motion to compel a further response.

Why would a motion to compel be denied?

A judge might deny a motion to compel for several reasons, including: The requested information was not essential to the case. The opposing party already produced the requested material. The motion did not specifically name what materials were being sought.

What happens if discovery is not answered?

If the other person did not respond or didn't provide complete responses, try to work it out with them directly first. If that does not work, you can request a court order that requires them to respond or respond with more information. You have 45 days to do this.

What happens if discovery responses are late?

What happens if I am late serving my responses? Missing the deadline to serve your responses has a couple of effects: You waive (give up) any objections to the discovery requests. This means that any answers served must contain no objections to the questions.

How long does prosecution have to provide discovery?

Generally, the prosecution must provide discovery within a set period after the defense's formal request, often ranging from a few weeks to several months. Evidence should be available to the defense either at the preliminary hearing or after the accused has been indicted by a grand jury.

What five unethical practices are involved in the discovery process?

  • It's unethical to stop a party from obtaining evidence.
  • To destroy evidence.
  • Falsify evidence.
  • Make an unwarranted discovery request.
  • To request more information than is necessary for the case.

How do you oppose a motion to compel?

If the other attorney or party opposes your motion, you may choose to serve and file a reply to the opposition at least five court days prior to the motion. CCP § 1005. It must be served by overnight mail to reach the opposing party no more than one day after it is filed.

What happens if you ignore interrogatories?

If you still fail to answer the interrogatories, the judge can strike your pleadings or charge you with a fine.

What happens if a defendant refuses to speak?

Refusal to testify or answer all or any questions on the basis of right against self-incrimination cannot be used against such person in any way or be used as evidence of guilt.

What happens if you don't follow 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 important is a motion of discovery?

Discovery allows your defense to aggressively challenge evidence and increases the chances that exculpatory evidence will be taken into consideration. In other words, criminal discovery laws in California help ensure a fairer legal system and is absolutely a critical step in your case.

What is the burden of proof motion to compel?

Generally, the proponent of a motion to compel discovery bears the initial burden of proving that the information sought is relevant.

How to beat 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.

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.

What is a motion to compel for dummies?

A motion to compel is a legal request made by one party to enforce the production of relevant information or evidence during the discovery process of a case. If one party fails or refuses to respond to discovery requests, the opposing party may file a motion to compel to seek court intervention and ensure compliance.

How long does a motion to compel take?

It depends if there was a hearing or not on your motion to compel. If there was not a hearing, you can expect an order on the motion generally within 30 days, depending on how busy the judge's desk is.

What is the cut off for discovery?

The deadline for finishing discovery (the discovery cutoff) is 30 days before the original date set for a trial unless the parties have agreed or the court has ordered to extend the time.

How do you argue a motion?

  1. Understand Judicial Attention Spans:
  2. Be Certain Your Brief and Arguments Tell the Story. ...
  3. Employ Innocence by Association. ...
  4. Avoid “Red Flag” Clues for the Judicial Reader. ...
  5. Avoid Ad Hominem Attacks and Language. ...
  6. Argue to Win. ...
  7. Never Squander Credibility.