Rule 35.Physical and Mental Examination of Persons.

Last amended January 15, 1998 · Last verified July 6, 2026

In one sentenceRule 35 lets a court order a party, or someone in a party's custody, to undergo a physical or mental examination when that condition is truly at issue, and sets rules for sharing the examiner's report afterward.

Full Text of Rule 35

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b)

(a) Order for Examination. When the mental or physical condition (including the blood group) of a party, or of a person in the custody or under the legal control of a party, is in controversy, the court in which the action is pending may order the party to submit to a physical or mental examination by a suitably licensed or certified examiner or to produce for examination the person in the party’s custody or legal control. The order may be made only on motion for good cause shown and upon notice to the person to be examined and to all parties and shall specify the time, place, manner, conditions, and scope of the examination and the person or persons by whom it is to be made.

(b) Report of Examiner.

(1) If requested by the party against whom an order is made under Rule 35(a) or the person examined, the party causing the examination to be made shall deliver to the requesting party a copy of a detailed written report of the examiner setting out the examiner’s findings, including results of all tests made, diagnoses and conclusions, together with like reports of all earlier examinations of the same condition. After delivery the party causing the examination shall be entitled upon request to receive from the party against whom the order is made a like report of any examination, previously or thereafter made, of the same condition, unless, in the case of a report of examination of a person not a party, the party shows that the party is unable to obtain it. The court on motion may make an order against a party requiring delivery of a report on such terms as are just, and if an examiner fails or refuses to make a report the court may exclude the examiner’s testimony if offered at trial.

(2) By requesting and obtaining a report of the examination so ordered or by taking the deposition of the examiner, the party examined waives any privilege the party may have in that action or any other involving the same controversy, regarding the testimony of every other person who has examined or may thereafter examine the party in respect of the same mental or physical condition.

(3) This subdivision applies to examinations made by agreement of the parties, unless the agreement expressly provides otherwise. This subdivision does not preclude discovery of a report of an examiner or the taking of a deposition of the examiner in accordance with the provisions of any other rule.

End

Amendment History

(Adopted by SCO 5 October 9, 1959; amended by SCO 158 effective February 15, 1973; by SCO 1122 effective July 15, 1993; and by SCO 1295 effective January 15, 1998)

Notes

Note: Ch. 69, § 3, SLA 1989 provided that AS 25.20.050(e), enacted by ch. 69, § 1, SLA 1989, amended Civil Rule 35 by requiring the court, in action in which paternity is contested and to which the state is a party, to order certain genetic tests on the request of a party.

Note: Sections 38 and 41 of ch. 87 SLA 1997 amend AS 25.20.050 relating to paternity actions. According to § 149 of the Act, §§ 38 and 41 have the effect of amending Civil Rule 35 by requiring the court to order genetic testing in contested paternity actions in certain circumstances and preventing the court from ordering such testing if good cause is shown.

Plain-English Summary

When a party's physical or mental condition — including blood type — is a real issue in the case, or that of someone in the party's custody or legal control, the court may order an examination by a suitably licensed examiner, but only on a motion showing good cause and after notice to the person being examined and all parties. The order must spell out the time, place, manner, conditions, and scope of the exam and name the examiner.

Either side can request a detailed written report of the exam's findings, tests, diagnoses, and conclusions, along with reports from any earlier exams of the same condition; once a party gets that report, the other side is entitled to reports of any exam of the same condition, before or after, unless a report from a non-party examination can't be obtained. Requesting or receiving an examination report, or deposing the examiner, waives any privilege the examined party might otherwise claim over the findings of every other person who has examined, or later examines, the same condition. These provisions apply equally to exams the parties arrange by agreement, unless their agreement says otherwise, and they don't limit any other way to discover an examiner's report or take the examiner's deposition.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a court force me to undergo a medical exam in a civil case?

Only if your physical or mental condition is truly at issue and the other side shows good cause on a motion, with notice to you and all parties; the order must spell out the exam's scope and conditions.

If I get a copy of the other side's examination report, do I have to share mine?

Yes — requesting or receiving an examiner's report entitles the other party to any report on the same condition, and it waives your privilege over other examiners' findings on that condition.

Does Rule 35 apply to genetic testing in paternity cases?

State statutes require genetic testing in certain contested paternity actions where the state is a party, which have the effect of amending how Rule 35 operates in those cases.

Source & verification. The rule text, Amendment History, and Notes are reproduced verbatim from the official Alaska Rules of Civil Procedure (Alaska R. Civ. P. 35). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Alaska (Alaska Const. art. IV, § 15). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 6, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: independent medical examination Alaska civil casecourt ordered physical exam Alaska ruleexaminer report discovery AlaskaAlaska R. Civ. P. 35