(a) If, after service of a deposition notice, a party to the action or an officer, director, managing agent, or employee of a party, or a person designated by an organization that is a party under Section 2025.230, without having served a valid objection under Section 2025.410, fails to appear for examination, or to proceed with it, or to produce for inspection any document, electronically stored information, or tangible thing described in the deposition notice, the party giving the notice may move for an order compelling the deponent's attendance and testimony, and the production for inspection of any document, electronically stored information, or tangible thing described in the deposition notice.
§ 2025.450.Failure of party deponent to appear or proceed with deposition or to
Title 4. Civil Discovery Act · Chapter 9. Oral Deposition Inside California · Article 4. Objections, Sanctions, Protective Orders, Motions to Compel, and Suspension of Depositions · Last amended 2012 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 2025.450 lets a noticing party move to compel a party deponent's attendance, testimony, or document production after a deposition notice went unanswered without a valid objection, requires good cause and a meet and confer showing, applies electronically stored information burden-shifting, mandates sanctions on a granted motion, and authorizes escalating sanctions for continued disobedience.
Full Text of § 2025.450
(b) A motion under subdivision (a) shall comply with both of the following:
(1) The motion shall set forth specific facts showing good cause justifying the production for inspection of any document, electronically stored information, or tangible thing described in the deposition notice.
(2) The motion shall be accompanied by a meet and confer declaration under Section 2016.040, or, when the deponent fails to attend the deposition and produce the documents, electronically stored information, or things described in the deposition notice, by a declaration stating that the petitioner has contacted the deponent to inquire about the nonappearance.
(c) In a motion under subdivision (a) relating to the production of electronically stored information, the party or party-affiliated deponent objecting to or opposing the production, inspection, copying, testing, or sampling of electronically stored information on the basis that the information is from a source that is not reasonably accessible because of the undue burden or expense shall bear the burden of demonstrating that the information is from a source that is not reasonably accessible because of undue burden or expense.
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(d) If the party or party-affiliated deponent from whom discovery of electronically stored information is sought establishes that the information is from a source that is not reasonably accessible because of the undue burden or expense, the court may nonetheless order discovery if the demanding party shows good cause, subject to any limitations imposed under subdivision (f).
(e) If the court finds good cause for the production of electronically stored information from a source that is not reasonably accessible, the court may set conditions for the discovery of the electronically stored information, including allocation of the expense of discovery.
(f) The court shall limit the frequency or extent of discovery of electronically stored information, even from a source that is reasonably accessible, if the court determines that any of the following conditions exists:
(1) It is possible to obtain the information from some other source that is more convenient, less burdensome, or less expensive.
(2) The discovery sought is unreasonably cumulative or duplicative.
(3) The party seeking discovery has had ample opportunity by discovery in the action to obtain the information sought.
(4) The likely burden or expense of the proposed discovery outweighs the likely benefit, taking into account the amount in controversy, the resources of the parties, the importance of the issues in the litigation, and the importance of the requested discovery in resolving the issues.
(g) (1) If a motion under subdivision (a) is granted, the court shall impose a monetary sanction under Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 2023.010) in favor of the party who noticed the deposition and against the deponent or the party with whom the deponent is affiliated, unless the court finds that the one subject to the sanction acted with substantial justification or that other circumstances make the imposition of the sanction unjust.
(2) On motion of any other party who, in person or by attorney, attended at the time and place specified in the deposition notice in the expectation that the deponent's testimony would be taken, the court shall impose a monetary sanction under Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 2023.010) in favor of that party and against the deponent or the party with whom the deponent is affiliated, unless the court finds that the one subject to the sanction acted with substantial justification or that other circumstances make the imposition of the sanction unjust.
(h) If that party or party-affiliated deponent then fails to obey an order compelling attendance, testimony, and production, the court may make those orders that are just, including the imposition of an issue sanction, an evidence sanction, or a terminating sanction under Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 2023.010) against that party deponent or against the party with whom the deponent is affiliated. In lieu of, or in addition to, this sanction, the court may impose a monetary sanction under Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 2023.010) against that deponent or against the party with whom that party deponent is affiliated, and in favor of any party who, in person or by attorney, attended in the expectation that the deponent's testimony would be taken pursuant to that order.
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(i) (1) Notwithstanding subdivisions (g) and (h), absent exceptional circumstances, the court shall not impose sanctions on a party or any attorney of a party for failure to provide electronically stored information that has been lost, damaged, altered, or overwritten as the result of the routine, good faith operation of an electronic information system.
(2) This subdivision shall not be construed to alter any obligation to preserve discoverable information.
Plain-English Summary
When a party deponent, or that party's officer, director, managing agent, employee, or designated representative, fails to show up, fails to proceed, or fails to produce documents after being properly noticed, and never served a valid objection, this section gives the noticing party a path back into court. The noticing party can move for an order compelling the deponent's attendance, testimony, and production of whatever the notice described.
That motion has two built-in requirements: it has to lay out specific facts establishing good cause for demanding production of any documents or electronically stored information described in the notice, and it has to come with either a standard meet and confer declaration or, where the failure was a complete no-show, a declaration describing the moving party's attempt to contact the deponent about the absence. Electronically stored information again follows the burden-shifting and proportionality rules found elsewhere in this chapter.
If the motion succeeds, the court must sanction the deponent or the party the deponent is affiliated with, in favor of the noticing party and any other party who showed up expecting the deposition to happen, absent substantial justification. And if the deponent still disobeys the resulting order, the consequences escalate well past a monetary sanction: the court can impose an issue sanction, an evidence sanction, or a terminating sanction, on top of or instead of a further monetary sanction, giving real weight to a party deponent's obligation to comply once ordered.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can be the target of this motion?
A party deponent, or an officer, director, managing agent, employee, or designated organizational representative of a party.
What must the motion show?
Good cause for any document or electronically stored information production sought, plus a meet and confer declaration or, for a complete no-show, a declaration describing an attempt to contact the deponent about the absence.
What happens if the court grants the motion?
A mandatory sanction against the deponent or affiliated party, absent substantial justification.
What if the deponent still refuses to comply after the order?
The court may impose an issue, evidence, or terminating sanction, in addition to or instead of a further monetary sanction.
Amendment History
(Added by Stats.2004, c. 182 (A.B.3081), § 23, operative July 1, 2005. Amended by Stats.2012, c. 72 (S.B.1574), § 24.)
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the West's Annotated California Codes / Thomson Reuters. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: motion to compel deponent attendance californiaparty deponent refuses to appear deposition