(1) In rules 30.02 to 30.11,
(a) “document” includes a sound recording, videotape, film, photograph, chart, graph, map, plan, survey, book of account, and data and information in electronic form; and
(b) a document shall be deemed to be in a party’s power if that party is entitled to obtain the original document or a copy of it and the party seeking it is not so entitled. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.01 (1); O. Reg. 427/01, s. 12; O. Reg. 132/04, s. 6.
(2) In subrule 30.02 (4),
(a) a corporation is a subsidiary of another corporation where it is controlled directly or indirectly by the other corporation; and
(b) a corporation is affiliated with another corporation where,
(i) one corporation is the subsidiary of the other,
(ii) both corporations are subsidiaries of the same corporation, or
(iii) both corporations are controlled directly or indirectly by the same person or persons. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.01 (2).
Disclosure
(1) Every document relating to any matter in issue in an action that is or has been in the possession, control or power of a party to the action shall be disclosed as provided in rules 30.03 to 30.10, whether or not privilege is claimed in respect of the document. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.02 (1).
[Note: On January 1, 2010, subrule (1) is amended by striking out “relating to any matter in issue” and substituting “relevant to any matter in issue”. See: O. Reg. 438/08, ss. 26, 68 (1).]
Production for Inspection
(2) Every document relating to any matter in issue in an action that is in the possession, control or power of a party to the action shall be produced for inspection if requested, as provided in rules 30.03 to 30.10, unless privilege is claimed in respect of the document. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.02 (2).
[Note: On January 1, 2010, subrule (2) is amended by striking out “relating to any matter in issue” and substituting “relevant to any matter in issue”. See: O. Reg. 438/08, ss. 26, 68 (1).]
Insurance Policy
(3) A party shall disclose and, if requested, produce for inspection any insurance policy under which an insurer may be liable,
(a) to satisfy all or part of a judgment in the action; or
(b) to indemnify or reimburse a party for money paid in satisfaction of all or part of the judgment,
but no information concerning the insurance policy is admissible in evidence unless it is relevant to an issue in the action. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.02 (3).
Subsidiary and Affiliated Corporations and Corporations Controlled by Party
(4) The court may order a party to disclose all relevant documents in the possession, control or power of the party’s subsidiary or affiliated corporation or of a corporation controlled directly or indirectly by the party and to produce for inspection all such documents that are not privileged. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.02 (4).
Party to Serve Affidavit
(1) A party to an action shall, within ten days after the close of pleadings, serve on every other party an affidavit of documents (Form 30A or 30B) disclosing to the full extent of the party’s knowledge, information and belief all documents relating to any matter in issue in the action that are or have been in the party’s possession, control or power. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.03 (1).
[Note: On January 1, 2010, subrule (1) is revoked and the following substituted:
Party to Serve Affidavit
(1) A party to an action shall serve on every other party an affidavit of documents (Form 30A or 30B) disclosing to the full extent of the party’s knowledge, information and belief all documents relevant to any matter in issue in the action that are or have been in the party’s possession, control or power. O. Reg. 438/08, s. 27 (1).
See: O. Reg. 438/08, ss. 27 (1), 68 (1).]Contents
(2) The affidavit shall list and describe, in separate schedules, all documents relating to any matter in issue in the action,
[Note: On January 1, 2010, subrule (2) is amended by striking out “relating to any matter in issue” in the portion before clause (a) and substituting “relevant to any matter in issue”. See: O. Reg. 438/08, ss. 27 (2), 68 (1).]
(a) that are in the party’s possession, control or power and that the party does not object to producing;
(b) that are or were in the party’s possession, control or power and for which the party claims privilege, and the grounds for the claim; and
(c) that were formerly in the party’s possession, control or power, but are no longer in the party’s possession, control or power, whether or not privilege is claimed for them, together with a statement of when and how the party lost possession or control of or power over them and their present location. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.03 (2).
(3) The affidavit shall also contain a statement that the party has never had in the party’s possession, control or power any document relating to any matter in issue in the action other than those listed in the affidavit. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.03 (3).
[Note: On January 1, 2010, subrule (3) is amended by striking out “relating to any matter in issue” and substituting “relevant to any matter in issue”. See: O. Reg. 438/08, ss. 27 (3), 68 (1).]
Lawyer's Certificate
(4) Where the party is represented by a lawyer, the lawyer shall certify on the affidavit that he or she has explained to the deponent,
(a) the necessity of making full disclosure of all documents relating to any matter in issue in the action; and
[Note: On January 1, 2010, clause (a) is amended by striking out “relating to any matter in issue” and substituting “relevant to any matter in issue”. See: O. Reg. 438/08, ss. 27 (4), 68 (1).]
(b) what kinds of documents are likely to be relevant to the allegations made in the pleadings. O. Reg. 653/00, s. 3.
Affidavit not to be Filed
(5) An affidavit of documents shall not be filed unless it is relevant to an issue on a pending motion or at trial. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.03 (5).
Request to Inspect
(1) A party who serves on another party a request to inspect documents (Form 30C) is entitled to inspect any document that is not privileged and that is referred to in the other party’s affidavit of documents as being in that party’s possession, control or power. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.04 (1).
(2) A request to inspect documents may also be used to obtain the inspection of any document in another party’s possession, control or power that is referred to in the originating process, pleadings or an affidavit served by the other party. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.04 (2).
(3) A party on whom a request to inspect documents is served shall forthwith inform the party making the request of a date within five days after the service of the request to inspect documents and of a time between 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. when the documents may be inspected at the office of the lawyer of the party served, or at some other convenient place, and shall at the time and place named make the documents available for inspection. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.04 (3); O. Reg. 575/07, s. 1.
Documents to be Taken to Examination and Trial
(4) Unless the parties agree otherwise, all documents listed in a party’s affidavit of documents that are not privileged and all documents previously produced for inspection by the party shall, without notice, summons or order, be taken to and produced at,
(a) the examination for discovery of the party or of a person on behalf or in place of or in addition to the party; and
(b) the trial of the action. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.04 (4).
Court may Order Production
(5) The court may at any time order production for inspection of documents that are not privileged and that are in the possession, control or power of a party. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.04 (5).
Court may Inspect to Determine Claim of Privilege
(6) Where privilege is claimed for a document, the court may inspect the document to determine the validity of the claim. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.04 (6).
Copying of Documents
(7) Where a document is produced for inspection, the party inspecting the document is entitled to make a copy of it at the party’s own expense, if it can be reproduced, unless the person having possession or control of or power over the document agrees to make a copy, in which case the person shall be reimbursed for the cost of making the copy. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.04 (7).
Divided Disclosure or Production
(8) Where a document may become relevant only after the determination of an issue in the action and disclosure or production for inspection of the document before the issue is determined would seriously prejudice a party, the court on the party’s motion may grant leave to withhold disclosure or production until after the issue has been determined. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.04 (8).
The disclosure or production of a document for inspection shall not be taken as an admission of its relevance or admissibility. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.05.
Where the court is satisfied by any evidence that a relevant document in a party’s possession, control or power may have been omitted from the party’s affidavit of documents, or that a claim of privilege may have been improperly made, the court may,
(a) order cross-examination on the affidavit of documents;
(b) order service of a further and better affidavit of documents;
(c) order the disclosure or production for inspection of the document, or a part of the document, if it is not privileged; and
(d) inspect the document for the purpose of determining its relevance or the validity of a claim of privilege. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.06.
Where a party, after serving an affidavit of documents,
(a) comes into possession or control of or obtains power over a document that relates to a matter in issue in the action and that is not privileged; or
(b) discovers that the affidavit is inaccurate or incomplete,
the party shall forthwith serve a supplementary affidavit specifying the extent to which the affidavit of documents requires modification and disclosing any additional documents. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.07.
Failure to Disclose or Produce Document
(1) Where a party fails to disclose a document in an affidavit of documents or a supplementary affidavit, or fails to produce a document for inspection in compliance with these rules, an order of the court or an undertaking,
(a) if the document is favourable to the party’s case, the party may not use the document at the trial, except with leave of the trial judge; or
(b) if the document is not favourable to the party’s case, the court may make such order as is just. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.08 (1); O. Reg. 504/00, s. 3.
Failure to Serve Affidavit or Produce Document
(2) Where a party fails to serve an affidavit of documents or produce a document for inspection in compliance with these rules or fails to comply with an order of the court under rules 30.02 to 30.11, the court may,
(a) revoke or suspend the party’s right, if any, to initiate or continue an examination for discovery;
(b) dismiss the action, if the party is a plaintiff, or strike out the statement of defence, if the party is a defendant; and
(c) make such other order as is just. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.08 (2).
Where a party has claimed privilege in respect of a document and does not abandon the claim by giving notice in writing and providing a copy of the document or producing it for inspection at least 90 days before the commencement of the trial, the party may not use the document at the trial, except to impeach the testimony of a witness or with leave of the trial judge. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.09; O. Reg. 19/03, s. 7.
Order for Inspection
(1) The court may, on motion by a party, order production for inspection of a document that is in the possession, control or power of a person not a party and is not privileged where the court is satisfied that,
(a) the document is relevant to a material issue in the action; and
(b) it would be unfair to require the moving party to proceed to trial without having discovery of the document. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.10 (1).
Notice of Motion
(2) A motion for an order under subrule (1) shall be made on notice,
(a) to every other party; and
(b) to the person not a party, served personally or by an alternative to personal service under rule 16.03. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.10 (2).
Court may Inspect Document
(3) Where privilege is claimed for a document referred to in subrule (1), or where the court is uncertain of the relevance of or necessity for discovery of the document, the court may inspect the document to determine the issue. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.10 (3).
Preparation of Certified Copy
(4) The court may give directions respecting the preparation of a certified copy of a document referred to in subrule (1) and the certified copy may be used for all purposes in place of the original. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.10 (4).
Cost of Producing Document
(5) The moving party is responsible for the reasonable cost incurred or to be incurred by the person not a party to produce a document referred to in subrule (1), unless the court orders otherwise. O. Reg. 260/05, s. 5.
The court may order that a relevant document be deposited for safe keeping with the registrar and thereafter the document shall not be inspected by any person except with leave of the court. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 30.11.