Discovery is the factfinding process in civil litigation in which the parties to a lawsuit exchange requests for the production of documents and other tangible items (requests for production); written questions to be answered under oath (interrogatories); witness testimony to be provided by oral deposition; disclosures that may be required under the applicable rules without request from an opposing party; and requests or subpoenas to third-parties (who are not parties to the lawsuit) for the production of documents or tangible things, or the giving of testimony by oral deposition, for example.

The discovery process is one of the most important, time-consuming, and often expensive parts of civil litigation. The discovery process—including the scope of discovery requests, deadlines to respond, and privileges from responding—are usually governed by the state or jurisdiction’s rules of civil procedure or code of civil procedure. For example, in federal court discovery is governed by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

In Maine, the discovery process in civil litigation is governed by the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure, which are similar to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. During discovery, parties to a lawsuit exchange information relevant to the case through various means such as requests for production of documents, interrogatories (written questions to be answered under oath), and depositions (witness testimony given under oath before trial). Parties may also be required to make certain disclosures without a request from the opposing party. The scope of discovery is generally broad, allowing parties to obtain information that is reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence. However, there are limits to prevent abuse of the discovery process, including the assertion of privileges (e.g., attorney-client privilege) and protections for work product. Deadlines for responding to discovery requests are set by the court, and failure to comply with discovery rules can result in sanctions. The discovery process in Maine is designed to facilitate the fair and efficient resolution of disputes by ensuring that both sides have access to the necessary facts before trial.