Unless the court orders otherwise, the parties may by written stipulation (1) provide that depositions may be taken before any person, at any time or place, upon any notice, and in any manner and when so taken may be used like other depositions, and (2) modify the procedures provided by these rules for other methods of discovery.
Rule 29.Stipulations Regarding Discovery Procedure
Last amended October 1, 1970 · Last verified July 8, 2026
In one sentenceRule 29 lets parties agree in writing to change how depositions are taken or modify other discovery procedures without needing a court order, unless the court decides to override the stipulation.
Full Text of Rule 29
Advisory Committee’s Notes & Reporter’s Notes
Advisory Committee’s Note — October 1, 1970
One objective of the amendments to the discovery rules is to permit the discovery process to operate with a minimum of intervention by the court. In Maine where a judge is in many counties available only infrequently and where in all counties the judges are too busy to be burdened with handling routine and nonessential motions, extrajudicial operation of discovery is even more desirable. Rule 29 permits the parties by stipulation to modify any of the procedures provided by the discovery rules. Any stipulation varying the discovery procedures may be superseded by court order. It is expected that the court will intervene to overrule a stipulation only under extraordinary circumstances.
Among the discovery procedures which may be modified by written stipulation of the parties are the time periods for responding to interrogatories under Rule 33, requests for production or inspection under Rule 30(b) (5) or Rule 34, and requests for admissions under Rule 36. The November, 1967, Preliminary Draft of the proposed amendments to the federal discovery rules contained Rule 29 in the same form as now adopted by Maine. However, the federal Advisory Committee on Civil Rules before the final submission of its recommendations to the Judicial Conference of the United States added the following limited clause: “except that stipulations extending the time provided in Rules 33, 34, and 36 for responses to discovery may be made only with the approval of the court.” The Maine Committee does not believe that this limitation on written stipulations by the parties would be desirable in the context of Maine practice and accordingly have not followed the lead of the federal rulemakers in this regard.
Reporter's Notes — December 1, 1959
This rule is the same as Federal Rule 29.
Plain-English Summary
Discovery does not always need a judge’s involvement to run smoothly. Rule 29 lets parties agree, in a written stipulation, to take depositions before any person, at any time or place, on any notice, and in any manner, with those depositions usable just like ones taken under the rule’s ordinary procedures. The same stipulation authority extends to modifying the procedures for any other discovery method, such as adjusting deadlines for interrogatories or document requests.
A court can still override a stipulation if it orders otherwise, but the rule anticipates that courts will intervene only in unusual circumstances — Maine deliberately declined to follow a federal limitation requiring court approval for stipulations that extend interrogatory, production, or admission deadlines, trusting parties instead to manage those adjustments themselves.
Frequently Asked Questions
What can parties change about discovery through a Rule 29 stipulation?
Where and when depositions are taken, who takes them, and the manner of taking them, plus the procedures governing any other discovery method, such as deadlines for responding to interrogatories or document requests.
Does a discovery stipulation need court approval to take effect?
No. It takes effect on its own once the parties sign it in writing, unless the court orders otherwise; Maine does not require court approval even for stipulations extending discovery-response deadlines.
Can a court override a discovery stipulation?
Yes, though the rule expects that to happen only in unusual circumstances, since its purpose is to let discovery proceed with minimal court intervention.
Source & verification. The rule text and Advisory Committee’s Notes / Reporter’s
Notes are reproduced verbatim from the official Maine Rules of Civil Procedure (Me. R. Civ. P. 29), prescribed by the
Supreme Judicial Court of Maine (4 M.R.S. § 8, the Rules Enabling Act). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 8, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: discovery stipulationsmodifying discovery by agreement