{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-12-12-3237","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 12, § 12-3237","heading":"Failure to make or cooperate in discovery - Sanctions -","body":"Exception.\n\nA. MOTION FOR ORDER COMPELLING DISCOVERY. A party, upon\n\nreasonable notice to other parties and all persons affected thereby,\n\nmay apply for an order compelling discovery as follows:\n\n1. APPROPRIATE COURT. An application for an order to a party\n\nmay be made to the court in which the action is pending, or, on\n\nmatters, relating to a deposition, to the district court in the\n\ncounty where the deposition is being taken. An application for an\n\norder to a deponent who is not a party shall be made to the district\n\ncourt in the county where the deposition is being taken or to the\n\ncourt in which the action is pending.\n\n2. MOTION. If a deponent fails to answer a question propounded\n\nor submitted under Section 3230 or 3231 of this title, or a\n\ncorporation or other entity fails to make a designation under\n\nparagraph 6 of subsection C of Section 3230 or subsection A of\n\nSection 3231 of this title, or a party fails to answer an\n\ninterrogatory submitted under Section 3233 of this title, or if a\n\nparty, in response to a request for inspection and copying submitted\n\nunder Section 3234 of this title, fails to produce documents or\n\nrespond that the inspection or copying will be permitted as\n\nrequested or fails to permit the inspection or copying as requested,\n\nor if a party or witness objects to the inspection or copying of any\n\nmaterials designated in a subpoena issued pursuant to subsection A\n\nof Section 2004.1 of this title, the discovering party may move for\n\nan order compelling an answer, or a designation, or an order\n\ncompelling inspection and copying in accordance with the request or\n\nsubpoena. The motion must include a statement that the movant has\n\nin good faith conferred or attempted to confer either in person or\n\nby telephone with the person or party failing to make the discovery\n\nin an effort to secure the information or material without court\n\naction. When taking a deposition on oral examination, the proponent\n\nof the question may complete or adjourn the examination before\n\napplying for an order.\n\nWhen a claim of privilege or other protection from discovery is\n\nmade in response to any request or subpoena for documents, and the\n\ncourt, in its discretion, determines that a privilege log is\n\nnecessary in order to determine the validity of the claim, the court\n\nshall order the party claiming the privilege to prepare and serve a\n\nprivilege log upon the terms and conditions deemed appropriate by\n\nthe court. The privilege log shall be served upon all other\n\nparties. Unless otherwise ordered by the court, the privilege log\n\nshall include, as to each document for which a claim of privilege or\n\nother protection from discovery has been made, the following:\n\na. the author or authors,\n\nb. the recipient or recipients,\n\nc. its origination date,\n\nd. its length,\n\ne. the nature of the document or its intended purpose,\n\nand\n\nf. the basis for the objection.\n\nThe court may conduct an in camera review of the documents for which\n\nthe privilege or other protection from discovery is claimed. If the\n\ncourt denies the motion in whole or in part, it may make such\n\nprotective order as it would have been empowered to make on a motion\n\nmade pursuant to subsection C of Section 3226 of this title.\n\n3. EVASIVE OR INCOMPLETE ANSWER. For purposes of this\n\nsubsection, an evasive or incomplete answer is to be treated as a\n\nfailure to answer.\n\n4. AWARD OF EXPENSES OF MOTION. If the motion is granted, the\n\ncourt shall, after opportunity for hearing, require the party or\n\ndeponent whose conduct necessitated the motion or the party or\n\nattorney advising such conduct or both of them to pay to the moving\n\nparty the reasonable expenses incurred in obtaining the order,\n\nincluding attorney fees, unless the court finds that the opposition\n\nto the motion was substantially justified or that other\n\ncircumstances make an award of expenses unjust.\nearing, require the party or\n\ndeponent whose conduct necessitated the motion or the party or\n\nattorney advising such conduct or both of them to pay to the moving\n\nparty the reasonable expenses incurred in obtaining the order,\n\nincluding attorney fees, unless the court finds that the opposition\n\nto the motion was substantially justified or that other\n\ncircumstances make an award of expenses unjust.\n\nIf the motion is denied, the court shall, after opportunity for\n\nhearing, require the moving party or the attorney advising the\n\nmotion or both of them to pay to the party or deponent who opposed\n\nthe motion the reasonable expenses incurred in opposing the motion,\n\nincluding attorney fees, unless the court finds that the making of\n\nthe motion was substantially justified or that other circumstances\n\nmake an award of expenses unjust.\n\nIf the motion is granted in part and denied in part, the court\n\nmay apportion the reasonable expenses incurred in relation to the\n\nmotion among the parties and persons in a just manner.\n\nB. FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ORDER.\n\n1. SANCTIONS BY COURT IN COUNTY WHERE DEPOSITION IS TAKEN. If\n\na deponent fails to be sworn or to answer a question after being\n\ndirected to do so by the court in the county in which the deposition\n\nis being taken, the failure may be considered a contempt of that\n\ncourt.\n\n2. SANCTION BY COURT IN WHICH ACTION IS PENDING. If a party or\n\nan officer, director or managing agent of a party or a person\n\ndesignated under paragraph 6 of subsection C of Section 3230 or\n\nsubsection A of Section 3231 of this title to testify on behalf of a\n\nparty fails to obey an order to provide or permit discovery,\n\nincluding an order made under subsection A of this section or\n\nSection 3235 of this title, or if a party fails to obey an order\n\nentered under subsection F of Section 3226 of this title, the court\n\nin which the action is pending may make such orders in regard to the\n\nfailure as are just. Such orders may include the following:\n\na. an order that the matters regarding which the order\n\nwas made or any other designated facts shall be taken\n\nto be established for the purposes of the action in\n\naccordance with the claim of the party obtaining the\n\norder,\n\nb. an order refusing to allow the disobedient party to\n\nsupport or oppose designated claims or defenses, or\n\nprohibiting him from introducing designated matters in\n\nevidence,\n\nc. an order striking out pleadings or parts thereof, or\n\nstaying further proceedings until the order is obeyed,\n\nor dismissing the action or proceedings or any part\n\nthereof, or rendering a judgment by default against\n\nthe disobedient party,\n\nd. in lieu of or in addition to the orders provided for\n\nin subparagraphs a through c of this paragraph, an\n\norder treating as a contempt of court the failure to\n\nobey any orders except an order to submit to a\n\nphysical or mental examination,\n\ne. where a party has failed to comply with an order under\n\nsubsection A of Section 3235 of this title requiring\n\nhim to produce another for examination, such orders as\n\nare listed in subparagraphs a, b and c of this\n\nparagraph, unless the party failing to comply shows\n\nthat he is unable to produce such person for\n\nexamination,\n\nf. if a person, not a party, fails to obey an order\n\nentered under subsection C of Section 3234 of this\n\ntitle, the court may treat the failure to obey the\n\norder as contempt of court.\n\nIn lieu of or in addition to the orders provided for in this\n\nparagraph, the court shall require the party failing to obey the\n\norder or the attorney advising the party or both to pay the\n\nreasonable expenses, including attorney fees, caused by the failure,\n\nunless the court finds that the failure was substantially justified\n\nor that other circumstances make an award of expenses unjust.\n\nC. EXPENSES ON EXAMINATION OF PROPERTY. The reasonable expense\n\nof making the property available under Section 3234 of this title\ney the\n\norder or the attorney advising the party or both to pay the\n\nreasonable expenses, including attorney fees, caused by the failure,\n\nunless the court finds that the failure was substantially justified\n\nor that other circumstances make an award of expenses unjust.\n\nC. EXPENSES ON EXAMINATION OF PROPERTY. The reasonable expense\n\nof making the property available under Section 3234 of this title\n\nshall be paid by the requesting party, and at the time of the taxing\n\nof costs in the case, the court may tax such expenses as costs, or\n\nit may apportion such expenses between the parties, or it may\n\nprovide that they are an expense of the requesting party.\n\nD. EXPENSES ON FAILURE TO ADMIT. If a party fails to admit the\n\ngenuineness of any document or the truth of any matter as requested\n\nunder Section 3236 of this title, and if the party requesting the\n\nadmission thereafter proves the genuineness of the document or the\n\ntruth of the matter, the party may apply to the court for an order\n\nrequiring the other party to pay him or her the reasonable expenses\n\nincurred in making that proof, including reasonable attorney fees.\n\nThe court shall make the order unless it finds that:\n\n1. The request was held objectionable pursuant to subsection C\n\nof Section 3236 of this title; or\n\n2. The admission sought was of no substantial importance; or\n\n3. The party failing to admit had reasonable ground to believe\n\nthat he or she might prevail on the matter; or\n\n4. There was other good reason for the failure to admit.\n\nE. FAILURE OF PARTY TO ATTEND AT OWN DEPOSITION OR SERVE ANSWER\n\nTO INTERROGATORIES OR RESPOND TO REQUEST FOR INSPECTION. If a party\n\nor an officer, director or managing agent of a party or a person\n\ndesignated under paragraph 6 of subsection C of Section 3230 or\n\nsubsection A of Section 3231 of this title to testify on behalf of a\n\nparty fails:\n\n1. To appear before the officer who is to take the deposition,\n\nafter being served with a proper notice; or\n\n2. To serve answers or objections to interrogatories submitted\n\nunder Section 3233 of this title, after proper service of the\n\ninterrogatories; or\n\n3. To serve a written response to a request for inspection\n\nsubmitted under Section 3234 of this title, after proper service of\n\nthe request,\n\nthe court in which the action is pending on motion may make such\n\norders in regard to the failure as are just, and among others it may\n\ntake any action authorized under subparagraphs a, b and c of\n\nparagraph 2 of subsection B of this section. In lieu of or in\n\naddition to any order, the court shall require the party failing to\n\nact or the attorney advising him or her or both to pay the\n\nreasonable expenses, including attorney fees, caused by the failure,\n\nunless the court finds that the failure was substantially justified\n\nor that other circumstances make an award of expenses unjust.\n\nThe failure to act as described in this subsection may not be\n\nexcused on the ground that the discovery sought is objectionable\n\nunless the party failing to act has applied for a protective order\n\nas provided by subsection C of Section 3226 of this title.\n\nF. FAILURE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE FRAMING OF A DISCOVERY PLAN.\n\nIf a party or a party's attorney fails to participate in good faith\n\nin the framing of a discovery plan by agreement as is required by\n\nsubsection F of Section 3226 of this title, the court may, after\n\nopportunity for hearing, require such party or his or her attorney\n\nto pay to any other party the reasonable expenses, including\n\nattorney fees, caused by the failure.\n\nG. ELECTRONICALLY STORED INFORMATION. Absent exceptional\n\ncircumstances, a court may not impose sanctions on a party for\n\nfailure to provide electronically stored information lost as a\n\nresult of the routine, good-faith operation of an electronic\n\ninformation system.","path":["OK Code","Title 12"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os12.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"99f0130bc3a001258e2ea6fc0b4c448d91dff94504e7161689e4bac7a5dd0229","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-12-12-3236","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-12-12-3238"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}