Section 10(b) Requests for the Production of Documents
(Defendant to Plaintiff)

Summary

This template is a model set of requests for production (RFP) that defendants may use in securities fraud lawsuits brought by private plaintiffs alleging claim(s) under Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 10b-5. This template includes practical guidance, drafting notes, and optional clauses. Defendants in Section 10(b) litigation typically possess the majority of discoverable information. As a result, the cost and burden for defendants to respond to document discovery will always greatly exceed that of plaintiffs. With that dynamic in mind, defendants should be strategically mindful, throughout discovery, of the overall scope and breadth of the requests they serve on lead plaintiff, whether with respect to time period, number of requests, metadata requirements, search terms, or any other burden imposed. Any procedural or substantive standards or precedents set by way of defendants' document requests (e.g., choosing a broad relevant time period, establishing onerous requirements for the production of metadata, etc.) will likely be used as a yardstick in assessing any challenge to the reasonableness of plaintiffs' document requests. Counsel should be thoughtful of the downstream implications of any unnecessary burden wrought by defendants' document requests. Note that this template assumes that the RFPs are being served on behalf of at least one business entity defendant. For information on requests for production of documents generally, see Document Requests: Drafting and Serving RFPs (Federal) and Document Requests: Initial Considerations (Federal).