Rule 31.Depositions by written questions.

Last amended July 1, 2018 · Last verified July 1, 2026

In one sentenceRule 31 lets a party depose a witness by written questions instead of live oral examination, with the officer reading the questions to the deponent and recording the answers.

Full Text of Rule 31

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b) (c)

(a) When a deposition may be taken.

(1) Depositions permitted. A party may with leave of court, by written questions, depose: (A) any party; (B) any person disclosed as an expert witness under Rule 26.1 (d)(1); and (C) any document custodian in order to secure production of documents and establish evidentiary foundation. Unless all parties agree or the court orders otherwise for good cause, a party may not, by written questions, depose any other person or depose a person who has already been deposed in the action.

(2) Service of written questions by plaintiff earlier than 30 days after serving the summons and complaint. Unless a defendant has served a deposition notice or otherwise sought discovery under these rules, a plaintiff must obtain leave of court to serve written questions under Rule 31(b) earlier than 30 days after serving the summons and complaint on that defendant.

(3) Incarcerated deponents. Subject to Rule 31(a)(1), a party may depose an incarcerated person only by agreement of the person’s custodian or by leave of court on such terms as the court orders.

(4) Compelling attendance of deponent. A party may compel a nonparty deponent’s attendance by serving a subpoena under Rule 45. A party noticing the deposition of a party-or an officer, director, or managing agent of a party—need not serve a subpoena under Rule 45.

(b) Notice; service of questions and objections; questions directed to an entity.

(1) Service of written questions; required notice. A party who wants to depose a person by written questions must serve them on all parties, with a notice stating, if known, the deponent’s name and address. If the deponent’s name is unknown, the notice must provide a general description sufficient to identify the person or the particular class or group to which the person belongs. The notice must also state the name or descriptive title and the address of the officer before whom the deposition will be taken.

(2) Service of additional questions. Unless the parties agree or the court orders otherwise, any additional questions to the deponent must be served on all parties as follows: cross-questions, within 15 days after being served with the notice and direct questions; redirect questions, within 5 days after being served with cross-questions; and recross-questions, within 5 days after being served with redirect questions.

(3) Service of objections. A party who objects to the form of a written question served under Rule 31(b)(1) or (2) must serve the objection in writing on all parties within the time allowed for serving the succeeding cross-, redirect, or recross-questions, or, if to a recross-question, within 5 days after service of the recross-questions.

(4) Questions directed to an entity. In accordance with Rule 30(b)(6), a party may depose by written questions a public or private corporation, a limited liability company, a partnership, an association, a governmental agency, or other entity.

(c) Delivery to the officer; officer’s duties. The party who noticed the deposition must deliver to the officer designated in the notice a copy of the notice and copies of all the questions and objections served under Rule 31(b). The officer must promptly proceed in the manner provided in Rule 30(b), (c), (e), and (f) to:

(1) take the deponent’s testimony in response to the questions;

(2) prepare and certify the deposition; and

(3) deliver it to the party who noticed the deposition, attaching a copy of the notice, the questions, and the objections.

End

Amendment History

Promulgated by R-16-0010, effective January 1, 2017; amended by R-17-0010, effective July 1, 2018.

Plain-English Summary

Rule 31 offers a paper alternative to the oral deposition in Rule 30. A party who wants sworn testimony on record, but does not need the back-and-forth of live questioning, may serve written questions on the other parties. The officer designated in the notice reads the questions to the deponent, records the answers, and certifies the transcript — much like an oral deposition, but without a lawyer physically present to follow up in real time.

Because there is no live examiner, the rule builds in a structured round of follow-up questions: other parties may serve cross-questions, the noticing party may then serve redirect questions, and cross-questions may draw a final round of recross-questions, each on a fixed clock. Objections to the form of a question must be served within that same sequence, or they are waived. A written-question deposition always requires the court's leave, and it reaches only a party, a disclosed expert witness, or a document custodian; a plaintiff also needs leave to serve written questions in the first 30 days after serving the summons and complaint, and depositions of an incarcerated person require the custodian's agreement or a court order.

Rule 31 depositions are rare in practice — most parties prefer the flexibility of oral examination — but the option remains useful for routine testimony, such as authenticating records through a custodian, where a lawyer does not need to adapt questions on the fly.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is a written-question deposition different from a regular deposition?

Nobody questions the witness live. Instead, all sides submit their questions in writing ahead of time, and the officer conducting the deposition reads each question aloud and records the answer. There is no opportunity to improvise a follow-up based on what the witness just said.

Can other parties add their own questions?

Yes. After the noticing party serves its questions, other parties may serve cross-questions on a deadline, the noticing party may respond with redirect questions, and a final round of recross-questions may follow — each triggered by the round before it.

Who delivers the questions to the witness?

The party who noticed the deposition delivers copies of all the questions and objections to the officer named in the notice, and the officer takes it from there under the same procedures that govern oral depositions.

Source & verification. The rule text and History are reproduced verbatim from the official Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure (Ariz. R. Civ. P. 31). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Arizona (Ariz. Const. art. 6, § 5). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 1, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: deposition by written questionswritten deposition questions