By demanding and obtaining a report of a physical or mental examination under Section 2032.610 or 2032.620, or by taking the deposition of the examiner, other than under Article 3 (commencing with Section 2034.410) of Chapter 18, the party who submitted to, or produced another for, a physical or mental examination waives in the pending action, and in any other action involving the same controversy, any privilege, as well as any protection for work product under Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 2018.010), that the party or other examinee may have regarding reports and writings as well as the testimony of every other physician, psychologist, or licensed health care practitioner who has examined or may thereafter examine the party or other examinee in respect of the same physical or mental condition.
§ 2032.630.Waiver of privilege in pending and subsequent actions; work product privilege
Title 4. Civil Discovery Act · Chapter 15. Physical or Mental Examination · Article 6. Reports of Examination · Enacted 2004 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 2032.630 provides that demanding and obtaining a report under Section 2032.610 or 2032.620, or deposing the examiner outside the expert-exchange process, waives privilege and work-product protection for the examinee's condition in the pending case and any other action involving the same controversy.
Full Text of § 2032.630
Plain-English Summary
The report-demand process in the prior two sections carries a bigger consequence than just getting paperwork back, and this section spells it out. By demanding and obtaining a report of a physical or mental examination, or by taking the examiner's deposition outside the separate expert-witness deposition process, the party who submitted to or produced another for the exam waives privilege and any work-product protection regarding that condition.
That waiver reaches further than the immediate discovery exchange. It applies not just in the pending action but in any other action involving the same controversy, and it covers not just the examiner who performed the exam but every other physician, psychologist, or licensed health care practitioner who examined, or later examines, the party or other examinee for the same physical or mental condition. Choosing to obtain the exam report opens up the examinee's whole medical history on that condition, not just the single report requested.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does requesting the examiner's report waive privilege beyond that one report?
Yes. Section 2032.630 makes clear the waiver covers privilege and work-product protection for the examinee's condition generally, reaching every other examiner of the same condition, not just the report demanded.
Does this waiver apply only to the current lawsuit?
No. It applies in the pending action and in any other action involving the same controversy.
Does deposing the examiner also trigger this waiver?
Yes, if the deposition is taken outside the separate expert-witness deposition process, taking the examiner's deposition triggers the same waiver as demanding and obtaining the report.
Amendment History
(Added by Stats.2004, c. 182 (A.B.3081), § 23, operative July 1, 2005.)
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: waiver of privilege medical examination reportwork product waiver examiner deposition