Rule 53.Commissioners; discovery commissioners

Some discovery disputes are involved enough that a court benefits from delegating them, and Rule 53 sets up that structure. Commissioners generally can be appointed under West Virginia statute or the applicable procedural rules; discovery commissioners are a narrower tool meant for complex cases specifically, with their compensation assessable to the parties. A party unhappy with an order appointing, compensating, or defining a discovery commissioner's powers has 14 days to object.

A discovery commissioner can administer oaths, preside over discovery motions and resolution conferences, run any other proceeding tied to the job, regulate proceedings in front of them, and take whatever other action the job efficiently requires. But their authority stops at recommendation: after a discovery dispute is submitted, the commissioner writes a report recommending how to resolve each unresolved issue, files it with the court, and serves it on the parties — who aren't bound by it, since the court keeps final say.

Objecting to that report follows a tight schedule: 7 days to object, 5 more days for another party to respond (including its own objections), and 5 days from that same service of the objections for a reply — objections not raised in time are waived, and the disputed discovery can't proceed until the court resolves the objections or adopts the report. The court then adopts, reverses, or modifies the report (with or without a hearing), sets it for a hearing if asked or on its own initiative, or sends it back to the commissioner with instructions.