(a) Scope. Any party may serve on any other party a request (1) to produce and permit the party making the request, or someone acting on his behalf, to inspect and copy any designated documents (including writings, drawings, graphs, charts, photographs, phono-records, and other data compilations from which information can be obtained, translated, if necessary, by the respondent through detection devices into reasonably usable form), or to inspect and copy, test, or sample any tangible things which constitute or contain matters within the scope of Rule 26(b) and which are in the possession, custody or control of the party upon whom the request is served; or (2) to permit entry upon designated land or other property in the possession or control of the party upon whom the request is served for the purpose of inspection and measuring, surveying, photographing, testing, or sampling the property or any designated object or operation thereon, within the scope of Rule 26(b).
Rule 34.Production of Documents and Things and Entry Upon Land for Inspection and Other Purposes
Last amended June 4, 2026 · Last verified July 13, 2026
In one sentenceRule 34 lets a party request inspection and copying of another party's documents, electronically stored information, and tangible things, and entry onto land for inspection or testing.
Full Text of Rule 34
(b) Procedure.
(1) The request may, without leave of court, be served upon the plaintiff after commencement of the action and upon any other party with or after service of the summons and complaint upon that party. The request shall set forth the items to be inspected either by individual item or by category, and describe each item and category with reasonable particularity. The request shall specify a reasonable time, place and manner of making the inspection and performing the related acts.
(2) The party upon whom the request has been served shall serve a written response within 30 days after the service of the request, except that a defendant must serve a response within 30 days after the service of the request upon him or within 45 days after the summons and complaint have been served upon him, whichever is longer. A shorter or longer time may be directed by the court or, in the absence of such an order, agreed to in writing by the parties subject to Rule 29. The response shall state, with respect to each item or category, that inspection and related activities will be permitted as requested, unless the request is objected to. If objection is made to part of an item or category, the part shall be specified and inspection permitted of the remaining parts. The production or inspection must be completed no later than the time specified in the request or another reasonable time specified in the response. A blanket objection to a set of requests will not be recognized. All grounds for an objection to a request shall be made to the specific request or to a part thereof if it is compound. It is not sufficient to state merely that the request is not relevant or proportional or is otherwise improper. The grounds for the objection must be stated with particularity. An objection must also state whether any responsive materials are being withheld on the basis of that objection. The party submitting the request may move for an order under Rule 37(a) with respect to any objection to or other failure to respond to the request or any part thereof, or any failure to permit inspection as requested.
(3) A party who produces documents for inspection shall (A) organize and label them to correspond with the categories in the production request or (B) produce them as kept in the usual course of business if the party seeking discovery can locate and identify the relevant records as readily as can the party who produces the documents.
Amendment History
Amended November 18, 1996, effective March 1, 1997; amended January 13, 1997, effective March 1, 1997; amended January 28, 1999; amended and effective June 4, 2026.
Reporter's Notes
Reporter’s Notes to Rule 34: 1. Rule 34 is identical to FRCP 34. Prior Arkansas law was governed by superseded Ark. Stat. Ann. 28-356 (Repl. 1962) which tracked FRCP 34 prior to the 1970 amendments thereto. Under prior Arkansas law, a party seeking the production of documents, etc., was required to show good cause and obtain a court order to permit same. Under this and FRCP 34, the party seeking discovery need only serve a request upon opposing counsel. Should the opposition refuse to produce the document or thing requested, the party seeking discovery must move for an order compelling the production of the item. Thus, unless documents are produced by agreement, a hearing is still required.
2. Rule 34 and FRCP 34 omit any reference to privileged matter. Although this particular rule does not specifically preclude the production and inspecting of privileged matters, Rule 26(b)(1) makes it quite clear that matters which are deemed privileged are beyond the scope of discovery.
Addition to Reporter’s Notes, 1997 Amendment: The first and second sentences of the second paragraph of Rule 34(b) have been amended to track Rule 33(b)(3). In accordance with the prior version of Rule 34(b), the court may shorten or lengthen the time for responding to requests for production. New language expressly permits the parties to extend or shorten the response time by written agreement, a modification in discovery procedures that is permissible under Rule 29.
Addition to Reporter’s Notes, 1999 Amendment: The first and second paragraphs of subdivision (b) have been numbered and a new paragraph (3) added. The fourth sentence of the second paragraph has been amended to require a party who objects to part of a request for production to permit inspection with respect to the unobjectionable portions. The corresponding federal rule was so amended in 1993. A similar requirement for answers to interrogatories appears in Rule 33(b)(1).
The new third paragraph, based on Federal Rule 34(b), provides that a party from whom production is sought must (1) organize and label the documents in accordance with the categories set out in the production request, or (2) produce them as kept in the usual course of business. However, the second option is available only if "the party seeking discovery can locate and identify the relevant documents as readily as can the party who produces them." This requirement is intended to eliminate a problem that has arisen under the federal rule, which appears to give the producing party the right to produce records as kept in the usual course of business even though the party seeking discovery would be forced to sift through a jumble of documents in order to find those that are responsive to the production request. A similar requirement has been added to Rule 33(d), which allows the production of business records in response to interrogatories.
Addition to Reporter’s Notes, 2010 Amendment: Subdivision (c) has been amended to reflect the 2010 amendment to Rule 45(b), which allows subpoenas for the production of books, papers, documents, or tangible things without a related appearance at a deposition, hearing, or trial.
Addition to Reporter’s Notes, 2026 Amendment: Rule 34(b)(2) is amended to specify additional requirements for responses and objections to requests for production. This amendment incorporates additional procedures specified by the current versions of Fed. R. Civ. P. 34(b)(2)(B) and (C) and Local Rule 33.1 of the United States District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 34 covers the request for production: the tool a party uses to get another party's documents, data, and physical objects, or to walk onto property the other side controls. Subsection (a) reaches broadly -- writings, drawings, photographs, and other data compilations, including electronic information that must be translated into a readable form, plus tangible things that can be inspected, tested, or sampled. It also covers entry onto land to inspect, measure, survey, photograph, test, or sample the property or something on it. As with interrogatories, a request can go to the plaintiff once the case is filed and to any other party with or after service of the summons and complaint, with no need for advance court permission.
The request must describe what is sought, item by item or by category, with reasonable particularity, and must propose a reasonable time, place, and manner for the inspection. The responding party has 30 days to serve a written response -- or, for a defendant, the longer of 30 days from service of the request or 45 days from service of the summons and complaint -- and must state whether it will comply with each item or category. As with interrogatories, Rule 34 forbids a blanket objection: objections must attach to the specific request or part of it, must be stated with particularity rather than in generic terms, and must say whether any responsive material is being withheld on the objection's basis. If only part of an item or category draws an objection, the rest still has to be produced.
Rule 34(b)(3) addresses how documents get handed over once production is agreed to: either organized and labeled to match the categories in the request, or produced as they are kept in the ordinary course of business -- but only if the requesting party can locate and identify the records as readily that way as if they had been organized to the request. That qualifier keeps a responding party from dumping an unsorted mass of records on the other side and calling it compliance.
Rule 34(c) clarifies that this rule does not foreclose a separate action against a non-party for entry onto land, and that a non-party can be compelled to produce documents or things through a subpoena under Rule 45(b). A request ignored, or an inspection blocked, is enforceable through a Rule 37(a) motion to compel, and the 2026 amendment added further specificity requirements to Rule 34(b)(2) modeled on the federal rule and the local rules of Arkansas's federal district courts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What can be requested under Arkansas Rule 34?
Documents, electronically stored information, and other data compilations that can be translated into readable form, along with tangible things that can be inspected, tested, or sampled. Rule 34 also lets a party request entry onto land or other property the opposing party possesses or controls, to inspect, measure, survey, photograph, test, or sample it.
What is a request for production (RFP) in Arkansas civil practice?
An RFP is a written discovery request under Rule 34 asking another party to produce documents or things for inspection and copying, or to permit entry onto land for inspection or testing. It must describe the items sought with reasonable particularity and propose a reasonable time, place, and manner for the inspection.
How long does a party have to respond to a request for production?
30 days after service, except a defendant gets the longer of 30 days after service of the request or 45 days after service of the summons and complaint. The court can order a different deadline, and the parties can agree in writing to one under Rule 29.
Can a party object to only part of a document request?
Yes, and Rule 34(b)(2) requires it: if an objection applies to only part of an item or category, the responding party must specify that part and still permit inspection of the rest. Blanket objections to an entire request are not recognized.
How must a party organize documents when producing them?
Rule 34(b)(3) gives two options: organize and label the documents to match the categories in the request, or produce them as they are kept in the usual course of business. The second option is only available if the requesting party can locate and identify the records as readily that way as if they had been sorted by category.
Can Rule 34 be used to get documents from someone who is not a party to the lawsuit?
Not directly. Rule 34 governs requests between parties. To get documents or things from a non-party, Rule 34(c) points to Rule 45(b), which allows a subpoena compelling a non-party to produce records.
What happens if a party refuses to produce documents or blocks an inspection?
The requesting party can move under Rule 37(a) for an order compelling production or inspection. If the motion succeeds, or if the material is produced only after the motion is filed, the court will ordinarily require the resisting party to pay the reasonable expenses of the motion, including attorney's fees, unless the resistance was substantially justified.
Does Rule 34 cover electronically stored information?
Yes. Rule 34(a) reaches data compilations from which information can be obtained, translated by the responding party through detection devices into a reasonably usable form if necessary -- language that captures electronic records and data along with paper documents.
Source & verification. Rule text, Reporter's Notes, and amendment
history are reproduced verbatim from the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure, prescribed by
the Arkansas Supreme Court. The plain-English summary is original and written by us.
Last verified July 13, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: request for production arkansasRFP arkansasarkansas rule 34ARCP 34document production arkansasinspect documents arkansasentry upon land arkansasproduction of documents arkansasESI request arkansas