(a) Bills. If, after an action has been entered for 3 months, a party submits copies of bills incurred to opposing counsel, and no objection has been made within 30 days, the bills may be introduced without formal proof.
Rule 37.Standing Trial Orders -- Proof
Group VII: Trials · Last amended November 1, 2023 · Last verified July 14, 2026
In one sentenceRule 37 sets standing orders on how specific categories of proof come into evidence at trial without live testimony, covering bills, criminal records used for impeachment, disputed documents, expert files, life-expectancy tables, medical and court records, motor-vehicle issues, highway status, and stipulations.
Full Text of Rule 37
(b) Criminal Record.
(1) If a party plans to use or refer to any prior criminal record, for the purpose of attacking or affecting the credibility of a party or witness, the party shall first furnish a copy of same to the opposing party, and then obtain a ruling from the court as to whether the opposing party or a witness may be questioned with regard to any conviction for credibility purposes.
(2) Evidence of a conviction under this rule will not be admissible unless there is introduced a certified record of the judgment of conviction indicating that the party or witness was represented by counsel at the time of the conviction unless counsel was waived.
(c) Documents. The signatures and endorsements of all written instruments declared on will be considered as admitted unless the defendant shall serve a notice that they are disputed within 30 days after the date the defendant files an Answer.
(d) Expert Files. All experts, including doctors and law enforcement personnel, who are to testify at a trial, will be advised by counsel to bring their original records and notes to court with them.
(e) Life Expectancy. The life expectancy tables published by the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics and available at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs are admissible as evidence to prove life expectancy.
(f) Medical Records. X-rays and hospital records (which are certified as being complete records) if otherwise admissible and competent may be introduced without calling the custodian or technician.
(g) Motor Vehicles.
(1) Speed.prima facie The issue of speed of a motor vehicle on a public highway, if material, will be submitted on the grounds of reasonableness without regard to statutory provisions relative to rates of speed that are prima facie reasonable, unless a party objects thereto at the Trial Management Conference, or files written objection thereto at least 7 days before the trial.
(2) Licensing. No claim is to be made at any trial that the operator of a motor vehicle involved in the case was not properly licensed, unless the claim has been made at the Trial Management Conference, or unless the claim was filed in writing at least 7 days before the trial.
(h) Proof of Highway Waived Unless Demanded. In any case in which a road or way is alleged to be a "way" as defined in RSA 259:125 or a public highway, a party shall notify the opposing party at least 10 days prior to trial if said "way" or public highway must be formally proved; otherwise, the need to formally prove said "way" or public highway will be deemed to be waived.
(i) Stipulations. Unless otherwise expressly provided by these rules, all stipulations affecting a civil action, except stipulations which are made in the presence of the court and entered on the record, or embodied in an order of the court, shall be in writing and shall be signed by attorneys of record, non- attorney representatives of record, or by parties if self-represented. The court may require handwritten stipulations to be replaced by fully executed, typewritten stipulations within 10 days.
(j) Certified Court Records. If, after a civil or criminal action has been entered, a party provides opposing parties or their counsel with copies of certified New Hampshire state court records, and no objection for good cause has been made at least 30 days before the hearing or trial at which the records are to be introduced, the certified records may be introduced without a witness.
Amendment History
Adopted May 22, 2013, eff. October 1, 2013; amended July 24, 2014, eff. September 1, 2014; October 18, 2017, eff. January 1, 2018; September 20, 2023, eff. November 1, 2023.
2023: The 2023 amendment added (j).
2017: The 2017 amendment rewrote (e); and made a related change.
2014: The 2014 amendment deleted former (f) and (g), which read: "(f) Medical Examinations. In actions to recover damages for personal injuries, the defendant shall have the right to a medical examination of the plaintiff prior to, or during, trial. (g) Medical Reports. Copies of all medical reports relating to the litigation, in the possession of the parties, will be furnished to opposing counsel on receipt of the same"; redesignated former (h) through (j) and (l) as (f) through (i); deleted the former second sentence of (f), which read: "Any party shall have the right to procure from opposing counsel an authorization to examine and obtain copies of hospital records and X-rays involved in the litigation"; and deleted former (k).
Plain-English Summary
Rule 37 streamlines proof of routine facts so trials do not bog down calling witnesses to authenticate things no one disputes. Medical and other bills go in without formal proof if furnished to the other side at least three months after the case is entered and unobjected to within 30 days. Written instruments are deemed genuine unless the defendant disputes the signatures within 30 days of filing an Answer. Certified hospital records and X-rays that are otherwise admissible and competent come in without calling the custodian or technician, no advance notice or objection window required. Certified New Hampshire state court records work differently — since a 2023 amendment, they come in without a witness only if furnished to the opposing side and no objection for good cause is made at least 30 days before the hearing or trial. Life-expectancy tables from the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics are admissible to prove life expectancy, a provision rewritten in 2017.
Some categories require advance notice rather than automatic admission. A party who wants to attack a witness's credibility with a prior criminal record must first furnish a copy to the opposing party and get a court ruling on whether questioning about the conviction is proper, and the conviction itself is not admissible without a certified record showing the party or witness was represented by counsel or waived that right. Claims that a motor vehicle's speed was unreasonable despite falling within a statutory prima facie speed, or that a driver lacked a proper license, must be raised at the Trial Management Conference or in writing at least seven days before trial. Whether a road counts as a "way" or public highway must formally be proved unless the opposing party is notified at least ten days before trial that formal proof is required.
The remaining provisions round out trial logistics: experts, including doctors and law enforcement witnesses, are expected to bring their original records and notes to court, and stipulations affecting the case generally must be in writing and signed, unless made on the record or embodied in a court order. The rule's history shows real substantive tightening over time — the 2014 amendment stripped out the medical-examination and medical-report provisions that now live in Rule 28A, and the 2017 and 2023 amendments refined the life-expectancy-table and certified-court-records provisions.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do medical and other bills get into evidence without a witness?
Under Rule 37(a), if a party furnishes copies of bills to opposing counsel at least three months after the action was entered, and no objection is made within 30 days, the bills may be introduced without formal proof.
What must a party do before using a prior conviction to attack a witness's credibility?
The party must first furnish a copy of the criminal record to the opposing party and obtain a court ruling on whether questioning about the conviction is permitted, and the conviction is inadmissible without a certified record showing the party or witness was represented by counsel at the time, or validly waived counsel.
What table is used to prove life expectancy at trial?
Rule 37(e) makes the life expectancy tables published by the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics admissible to prove life expectancy, a provision the 2017 amendment rewrote.
Does Rule 37 still cover medical examinations of the plaintiff?
No. The 2014 amendment deleted the rule's former medical-examination and medical-report provisions; that subject now lives in Rule 28A, not Rule 37.
When must a party raise a motor vehicle speed or licensing issue before trial?
Claims that a vehicle's speed was unreasonable despite falling within a statutory prima facie reasonable rate, or that a driver was not properly licensed, must be raised at the Trial Management Conference or filed in writing at least seven days before trial.
Source & verification. Rule text, official Comments, and amendment
history are reproduced verbatim from the New Hampshire Superior Court Civil Rules, adopted
by the New Hampshire Supreme Court. Last verified July 14, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: standing trial orders prooflife expectancy tables evidencecertified court records admissibilityproof without witness