Objections and Responses to Interrogatories
(DC)

Summary

This template is objections and responses to interrogatories that may be used by a defendant in a District of Columbia Superior Court case. It contains practical guidance, drafting notes, and alternate clauses. Interrogatories are a frequently used discovery device, consisting of written questions propounded by one party to another. Interrogatories may relate to any matter, not privileged, relevant to the claims and defenses of any party. As the responding party, you must either answer the interrogatory under oath or provide a specific objection. See D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 33(b)(3). D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 33(b) states that a party must provide answers known to the party directly, who must furnish information available to that party. The answers must be made under oath and may be used to the extent allowed by the law of evidence. D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 33(b)(3), (c). If the party is an entity, the interrogatories must be answered by an officer or agent, who must furnish the information available to the entity. D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 33(b)(1)(B). In those instances, the individual responding must therefore provide responses even if they lack direct knowledge. At times, it may be appropriate to provide the source of knowledge in the interrogatory if an argument will later be presented that the information is irrelevant or the responding party lacks personal knowledge or other competence. This should obviously not be done if the source is privileged or otherwise protected from discovery. When responding to interrogatories, take several tactical considerations into account. If your objection is deemed to be improper, you may subject your client (and potentially yourself) to sanctions by the court. You must have a thorough understanding of what objections are appropriate. Often attorneys include the following limiting introduction to a response: (a) The information supplied in these answers is not based solely on the information of the executing party, but includes the knowledge of the party's agents, representatives, and, unless privileged, attorneys. (b) The word usage and sentence structure is that of the attorney who prepared these answers and does not purport to be the exact language of the executing party. This limitation, however, does not change the fact that the party is bound by the answers as written, which must be given under oath and signed by the party. D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 33(b)(3). When the interrogatories first are received, forward them to your clients with guidance as to what questions they must provide information for. Give them a deadline by which to respond, allowing sufficient time for the final responses to be prepared and served. This template assumes the defendant is responding to interrogatories served by the plaintiff. If you represent the plaintiff or co-defendant, you should customize accordingly. For a practice note on responding to interrogatories, see Interrogatories: Responding to Interrogatories (DC). For a related template, see Interrogatories (DC).