M E M O
TO: Joint Procedure Committee
FROM: Mike Hagburg
RE: Rule 33, N.D.R.Civ.P.; Interrogatories to Parties
Some limited changes are proposed for N.D.R.Civ.P. 33 in an effort to incorporate elements of the Discovery Guidelines:
Subdivision (a) is amended to limit the number of interrogatories each party may serve. Under the amended subdivision, a party may seek leave of court to serve additional interrogatories. An amendment has been made to the Explanatory Note reflecting this change.
This proposed change reflects Guideline 3 ("Discovery should be limited unless the court, on motion of a party, permits expanded discovery in an appropriate case") and Guideline 7 ("Counsel should at all times seek to control unnecessary expenses and delay").
An additional change is made to subdivision (b), moving language of instruction from the Explanatory Note to the rule itself. The Explanatory Note is amended to reflect this change.