36 CFR 1251.10 v2 – What are the filing requirements for a demand for documents or testimony?
You must comply with the following requirements, as appropriate, whenever you issue a demand to a NARA employee for records, agency information or testimony:
Terms Used In 36 CFR 1251.10 v2
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
(a) Your demand must be in writing and must be served on the appropriate party as identified in § 1251.8.
(b) Demands for production of records that are governed by the Privacy Act require authorization of a court of competent jurisdiction as defined in § 1251.3.
(c) Your written demand (other than a demand pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in a case in which NARA is a party, in which case you must comply with the requirements of that rule) must contain the following information:
(1) The caption of the legal proceeding, docket number, and name and address of the court or other authority involved;
(2) A copy of the complaint or equivalent document setting forth the assertions in the case and any other pleading or document necessary to show relevance;
(3) A list of categories of records sought, a detailed description of how the information sought is relevant to the issues in the legal proceeding, and a specific description of the substance of the testimony or records sought;
(4) A statement as to how the need for the information outweighs the need to maintain any confidentiality of the information and outweighs the burden on NARA to produce the records or provide testimony;
(5) A statement indicating that the information sought is not available from another source, from other persons or entities, or from the testimony of someone other than a NARA employee, such as a retained expert;
(6) If testimony is requested, the intended use of the testimony, a general summary of the desired testimony, and a showing that no document could be provided and used instead of testimony;
(7) A description of all previous decisions, orders, or pending motions in the case that bear upon the relevance of the requested records or testimony;
(8) The name, address, and telephone number of counsel to each party in the case; and
(9) An estimate of the amount of time that the requester and other parties may require with each NARA employee for time spent by the employee in connection with the request for testimony.
(d) NARA reserves the right to require additional information to process your demand.
(e) Your demand (other than a demand pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in a case in which NARA is a party, in which case you must comply with the requirements of that rule) should be submitted at least 45 days before the date that records or testimony is required. Demands submitted in less than 45 days before records or testimony is required must be accompanied by a written explanation stating the reasons for the late request and the reasons for expedited processing.
(f) Failure to cooperate in good faith to enable the General Counsel to make an informed decision may serve as the basis for a determination not to comply with your demand.
(g) The information collection contained in this section has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget under the Paperwork Reduction Act under the control number 3095-0038.