Rule 35.Physical and Mental Examination of Persons.

Current through February 2024 · Last verified September 12, 2026

In one sentenceRule 35 lets the court order a party to submit to a physical, mental or blood examination by a physician, or to produce someone in the party's control for one, but only on motion for good cause and with notice.

Full Text of Rule 35

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

(a) Order for Examination. In an action in which the mental or physical condition or the blood relationship of a party, or of an agent or a person in the custody or under the legal control of a party, is in controversy, the court may order the party to submit to a physical or mental or blood examination by a physician or to produce for such examination the party's agent or the person in the party's custody or legal control. The order may be made only on motion for good cause shown and upon notice to the person to be examined and to all parties and shall specify the time, place, manner, conditions, and scope of the examination and the person or persons by whom it is to be made.

(b) Report of Findings. If requested by the party against whom an order is made under Rule 35(a) or the person examined, the party causing the examination to be made shall deliver to him or her a copy of a detailed written report of the examining physician setting out the physician's findings and conclusions, together with like reports of all earlier examinations of the same condition. After such request and delivery the party causing the examination to be made shall be entitled upon request to receive from the party or person examined a like report of any examination, previously or thereafter made, of the same condition. If the party or person examined refuses to deliver such report the court on motion and notice may make an order requiring delivery on such terms as are just, and if a physician fails or refuses to make such a report the court may exclude that expert's testimony if offered at the trial.

(c) Statutory Appointment of Expert Witnesses. The provisions of this rule are in addition to existing statutes authorizing the appointment of expert witnesses. A motion for an order for a mental or physical examination shall specify whether it is made pursuant to subdivision (a) of this rule or to a statutory provision relating to expert witnesses. Upon a motion made pursuant to subdivision (a) of this rule, the court in its discretion may appoint an expert witness in accordance with applicable statutory provisions.

End

Amendment History

Rhode Island does not publish a per-rule amendment history inside the compiled rules text reproduced here. The text above is verified current through the source’s own February 2024 printing; for the underlying adopting orders and any later amendments, see the Rhode Island Judiciary’s compiled rules page.

Plain-English Summary

Subdivision (a) applies when the mental condition, physical condition or blood relationship of a party is in controversy, and it reaches beyond the party. The court may order the party to submit to a physical, mental or blood examination by a physician, or to produce for such an examination the party's agent or a person in the party's custody or under the party's legal control. The inclusion of blood relationship is what makes this rule matter in parentage cases as well as in custody and support disputes.

No one can schedule an examination by demand. The order may be made only on motion for good cause shown, with notice to the person to be examined and to all parties, and it must specify the time, place, manner, conditions and scope of the examination and the person or persons by whom it is to be made. That list of specifics is the reader's protection: an order that leaves the scope open is not what the rule calls for.

Subdivision (b) creates a trade. If the party against whom the order is made, or the person examined, requests it, the party who caused the examination to be made must deliver a copy of a detailed written report of the examining physician's findings and conclusions, along with like reports of all earlier examinations of the same condition. Making that request turns the obligation around: the party who arranged the examination is then entitled on request to a like report of any examination of the same condition, earlier or later, from the party or person examined. If the examined side refuses to deliver its report, the court on motion and notice may order delivery on just terms, and if a physician fails or refuses to make a report, the court may exclude that expert's testimony at trial.

Subdivision (c) keeps the rule from displacing statutory expert appointments. Its provisions are in addition to existing statutes authorizing the appointment of expert witnesses, and a motion for a mental or physical examination must specify whether it is made under subdivision (a) or under a statutory provision relating to expert witnesses. On a subdivision (a) motion, the court in its discretion may appoint an expert witness in accordance with the applicable statutory provisions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the court order a blood test to decide parentage?

Subdivision (a) applies where the blood relationship of a party, or of a person in a party's custody or legal control, is in controversy, and it allows the court to order a blood examination by a physician. The order may be made only on motion for good cause shown and upon notice to the person to be examined and to all parties.

Can the other parent just schedule a psychological evaluation of me?

No. An examination under this rule requires a court order, made on motion for good cause and notice, and the order must specify the time, place, manner, conditions and scope of the examination and the person or persons by whom it is to be made.

Do I get a copy of the examiner's report?

Yes, on request. If the party against whom the order is made or the person examined requests it, the party causing the examination to be made must deliver a copy of a detailed written report of the physician's findings and conclusions, together with like reports of all earlier examinations of the same condition.

Is there a catch to asking for the report?

There is a trade built into subdivision (b). After that request and delivery, the party who caused the examination to be made is entitled on request to a like report from the party or person examined of any examination of the same condition, made before or after.

What happens if I refuse to be examined?

Rule 37(b)(2) allows the court to enter orders taking facts as established, barring claims or defenses, striking pleadings, staying the case, dismissing it or entering a default. That subdivision does not allow a failure to obey an order to submit to a physical, mental or blood examination to be treated as contempt, but the other consequences remain available.

Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the official Rhode Island Family Court Rules of Domestic Relations Procedure (R.Dom.Rel.P. 35). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Rhode Island (R.I. Gen. Laws § 8-6-2). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified September 12, 2026. · Official source

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