Discovery Requests and Responses Part 3

You're a litigation associate, about ready to draft discovery requests.

Once you gathered your contextual documents and samples, what now?

Before drafting, check-in with the assigning attorney:

🤝 Confirm common themes for the case;

🤝 Confirm the type of requests you'll use this go-round (requests for admission, interrogatories, requests for production--you might not always use all three (by strategy or local rule));

🤝 Confirm the target number of requests (should you save some for supplemental or a second set of requests? are you limited to a certain number by the local rules?);

🤝 Confirm internal (soft) deadlines and external (client and court) deadlines (and make sure all are docketed on your calendar and the team members’ calendars).

As you look to trial, you'll start thinking about the story you will tell (to the bench or to a jury).

Discovery is a way to test that story, gathering facts in support of it, learning where you have holes, and determining what story lines do and do not work.

With the partner's help, you'll figure out how much of the story you want to give away in the requests themselves.

With this step complete, you're ready to draft (more on that tomorrow).

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