Interrogatories
(OH)

Summary

These interrogatories are for discovery between parties in civil actions in Ohio state courts. This template contains practical guidance and drafting notes and includes the components of a complete set of interrogatories, including a caption, definitions, instructions, and a certificate of service. Ohio Rule of Civil Procedure 33 governs interrogatories in Ohio state courts. Ohio Civ. R. 33. The rule addresses basic procedures and form of interrogatories. Ohio Civ. R. 33(A)(1)–(3). The remainder of Rule 33 and a portion of Ohio Civ. R. 37 govern procedures for answering interrogatories and procedures and sanctions for failure to answer interrogatories. Interrogatories may be served without leave of court upon the plaintiff after commencement of the action and upon any other party after service of the summons and complaint upon the party. Ohio Civ. R. 33(A)(2). The requesting party must serve them pursuant to Ohio Civ. R. 5(B)(2)(f) or (B)(3) on a shareable medium and in an editable format, by electronic mail. Ohio Civ. R. 33(A). A party who is unable to serve the interrogatories electronically may serve them by other means permitted by Ohio Civ. R. 5(B)(2). Ohio Civ. R. 33(A). Interrogatories are usually not filed with the court unless they are used in the proceeding or the court orders filing. Ohio Civ. R. 5(D). The number of interrogatories allowed, absent stipulation or court order, is 40. Ohio Civ. R. 33(A), Ohio Civ. R. 29. Check local court rules to see if there is a variation from the general limit. In Summit County, for example, the Court of Common Pleas, General Division, limits the "first set" number of interrogatories to a maximum of 35. Loc. R. 17.01 of Summit County Court of Common Pleas, General Division. To avoid wasting your interrogatories, draft precise interrogatories that are not repetitive or seek information you could obtain elsewhere. Note that subparts of interrogatories count towards the total of 40. Ohio Civ. R. 33(A). You do not need to serve all 40 permitted interrogatories at the same time. You may want to serve preliminary "background" interrogatories first and, depending upon the answers received, serve a second set of interrogatories to obtain more specific information. You must serve interrogatories on all parties to the case, except those in default for failure to appear, and not just the answering party. Ohio Civ. R. 5(A). Answers to interrogatories, written and under oath, must be served within 28 days of the service of the interrogatories unless the court orders otherwise. Ohio Civ. R. 33(A)(3). If a respondent fails to answer within 28 days, Ohio Civ. R. 37(A)(1) addresses motions to compel. Since a respondent has 28 days to respond to interrogatories, you should make sure that interrogatories are served at least, and preferably much more than, 28 days before the end of the discovery period. Local rules frequently address this discovery "cutoff" day. When drafting interrogatories, keep the following in mind: • Ohio Rule of Civil Procedure 26 governs all aspects of discovery in civil litigation, including interrogatories. Read it before drafting interrogatories to understand both the letter and the spirit of the discovery process, including its scope and limitations. • Progress from general to specific questions, beginning with an interrogatory requesting the identity of the person answering. • Be sure interrogatories are comprehensible to avoid an objection from the answering party. • Do not request privileged or irrelevant information. You may seek inadmissible information as long as it is reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence. See Ohio Civ. R. 26(B)(1) and (6). • Proofread comprehensively to be sure dates, times, places, identities, and other facts set out in your interrogatories are correct. • Serve interrogatories early and keep an eye on your deadlines. For more information on interrogatories see Interrogatories: Drafting and Serving Interrogatories (OH) and Interrogatories: Responding to Interrogatories (OH). For sample responses to interrogatories, see Objections and Responses to Interrogatories (OH).