Rule 36.Requests for Admission

Group V: Disclosures and Discovery · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified July 14, 2026

In one sentenceRule 36 lets a party serve written requests asking another party to admit facts, the application of law to fact, opinions, or the genuineness of documents, and sets the 30-day deadline (longer for the District or the United States) after which an unanswered request is deemed admitted.

Full Text of Rule 36

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

(a) SCOPE AND PROCEDURE.

(1) Scope. A party may serve on any other party a written request to admit, for purposes of the pending action only, the truth of any matters within the scope of Rule 26(b)(1) relating to:

(A) facts, the application of law to fact, or opinions about either; and

(B) the genuineness of any described documents.

(2) Form; Copy of a Document. Each matter must be separately stated. A request to admit the genuineness of a document must be accompanied by a copy of the document unless it is or has been, otherwise furnished or made available for inspection and copying. The request may, without leave of court, be served on the plaintiff after commencement of the action and on any other party with or after service of the summons and complaint on that party.

(3) Time to Respond; Effect of Not Responding. A matter is admitted unless, within 30 days after being served, the party to whom the request is directed serves on the requesting party a written answer or objection addressed to the matter and signed by the party or its attorney. A shorter or longer time for responding may be stipulated to under Rule 29 or be ordered by the court. However, unless the court shortens the time, a defendant is not required to serve answers or objections before the expiration of 45 days after service of the summons and complaint upon that defendant or before the expiration of 75 days after service of the summons and complaint upon the District of Columbia or its officer or agency or the United States or its officer or agency.

(4) Answer. If a matter is not admitted, the answer must specifically deny it or state in detail why the answering party cannot truthfully admit or deny it. A denial must fairly respond to the substance of the matter, and when good faith requires that a party qualify an answer or deny only a part of a matter, the answer must specify the part admitted and qualify or deny the rest. The answering party may assert lack of knowledge or information as a reason for failing to admit or deny only if the party states that it has made reasonable inquiry and that the information it knows or can readily obtain is insufficient to enable it to admit or deny.

(5) Objections. The grounds for objecting to a request must be stated. A party must not object solely on the ground that the request presents a genuine issue for trial.

(6) Motion Regarding the Sufficiency of an Answer or Objection. The requesting party may move to determine the sufficiency of an answer or objection. Unless the court finds an objection justified, it must order that an answer be served. On finding that an answer does not comply with this rule, the court may order either that the matter is admitted or that an amended answer be served. The court may defer its final decision until a pretrial conference or a specified time before trial. Rule 37(a)(5) applies to an award of expenses.

(b) EFFECT OF AN ADMISSION; WITHDRAWING OR AMENDING IT. A matter admitted under this rule is conclusively established unless the court, on motion, permits the admission to be withdrawn or amended. Subject to Rule 16(e), the court may permit withdrawal or amendment if it would promote the presentation of the merits of the action and if the court is not persuaded that it would prejudice the requesting party in maintaining or defending the action on the merits. An admission under this rule is not an admission for any other purpose and cannot be used against the party in any other proceeding.

(c) QUOTING EACH REQUEST IN FULL. Answers and objections to requests for admissions must identify and quote each request in full immediately preceding the answer or objection.

(d) ELECTRONIC FORMAT. A party, represented by counsel, serving requests for admission must, upon request of any other party, promptly transmit to the other party an electronic version of the requests for admission in a format that will enable the receiving party to copy the language of the requests for admission electronically. A self-represented party may participate in electronic discovery pursuant to this rule, provided that the party files a completed Civil Action Form 115, which includes the party’s email address and confirms the party’s capacity to file documents and receive the filings of other parties electronically and on a regular basis.

End

Comment

Identical to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 36, as amended in 2007, except for: (1) the addition of language in subsection (a)(3), clarifying the extended 75-day response period to interrogatories for the United States, the District of Columbia, or officers or agents of either, and the extended 45-day response period to interrogatories for all other defendants; (2) the addition of section (c), which requires that the responses and objections to requests for production must quote each request in full preceding the response or objection; and (3) the addition of section (d), requiring that represented parties, and self-represented parties electing to participate in electronic discovery, upon request, transmit electronic copies of requests for admission to any other party..

The language in section (c) comes from Local Rule 26.2(d) of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

Plain-English Summary

A request for admission asks the other side to concede a point rather than fight over it at trial. Under Rule 36(a), a party may serve requests asking another party to admit facts, the application of law to those facts, opinions about either, or that a described document is genuine. Each matter has to stand alone in its own separately stated request, and a request about a document's genuineness must come with a copy of that document unless it has already been made available.

Silence is costly here. Unless the responding party serves a written answer or objection within 30 days after being served, the matter is deemed admitted — no motion, no hearing, just an automatic admission. The rule gives a defendant more breathing room at the start of a case: 45 days after being served with the summons and complaint, or 75 days if the defendant is the District of Columbia, the United States, or one of their officers or agencies. Parties can agree to a different deadline under Rule 29, or the court can set one. When a party does respond, a denial has to squarely meet the substance of what was asked, and a party can plead lack of knowledge only after making reasonable inquiry and finding the available information still insufficient to answer.

Rule 36(b) explains what an admission is worth: it is conclusively established for that case unless the court allows it to be withdrawn or amended, and even then, only if withdrawal would help the case reach the merits without prejudicing the party who relied on the admission. An admission made under this rule cannot be used against the admitting party in any other proceeding. Two features are specific to D.C. practice: Rule 36(c) requires the responding party to quote each request in full immediately before the answer or objection, so the two documents don't have to be read side by side, and Rule 36(d) requires a represented party to transmit an electronic, copyable version of its requests to any other party that asks for one, with a path for self-represented parties to opt into the same electronic exchange.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens in D.C. Superior Court if I don't respond to a request for admission?

The matter is deemed admitted. Rule 36(a)(3) makes this automatic — unless you serve a written answer or objection within the deadline, the request is treated as conclusively admitted without any need for the requesting party to file a motion.

How long do I have to respond to requests for admission in a D.C. civil case?

Generally 30 days after being served. But a defendant does not have to respond before 45 days after being served with the summons and complaint, or before 75 days if the defendant is the District of Columbia, the United States, or one of their officers or agencies, unless the court shortens that time.

Can I admit only part of what a request for admission asks me to admit?

Yes. Rule 36(a)(4) requires you, when good faith calls for it, to specify which part you admit and to qualify or deny the rest, rather than denying the whole request outright.

Is an admission I make under Rule 36 usable against me in a different lawsuit?

No. Rule 36(b) states that an admission made under this rule is not an admission for any other purpose and cannot be used against the admitting party in any other proceeding.

Do I need to quote the original request when I answer or object to it?

Yes. Rule 36(c) is a D.C.-specific requirement: answers and objections must identify and quote each request in full immediately before the answer or objection, so the request and response appear together.

Source & verification. Rule text and official Comments are reproduced verbatim from the District of Columbia Superior Court Rules of Civil Procedure, adopted by the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Last verified July 14, 2026. · Official source

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