Tort Terms

Brien Roche

Parties in personal injury and other civil cases can engage in discovery. This is a process of sending each other requests for info or documents. Hence the goal is to discover what facts and expert opinions the other party relies on. Depositions are also a form of discovery. The better informed the parties are about their case the more likely it is that the case will settle

Discovery Constitutes Disclosure

The process can become quite involved. There are sometimes disputes about the requests or responses. However the federal courts have attempted to streamline the process. They require certain automatic disclosures. These are required even though the other party makes no request for such.

The general thrust is to make a full disclosure. This way both parties know all of the facts. With those facts a decision can be made as to whether to proceed with the case. They may decide to settle.

Specific Forms of Discovery

The specific forms of discovery include written questions called interrogatories. Request for documents are as the name implies. Also requests for admissions are written statements which the other party is asked to admit or deny. Requests for inspection generally relate to the inspection of some premises or object. In addition in some cases there may be a request for a medical exam of a party.
For more info about discovery and other personal injury related issues see the other pages on this site.
Also for more info on discovery see the pages on Wikipedia.