Rule 2-542.Examiners

An examiner's job is narrower than a magistrate's — take evidence, not decide contested points. Referral covers taking evidence in proceedings held to execute a judgment under Rule 2-633, plus other uncontested proceedings that aren't triable of right before a jury or referable to a standing magistrate. The order of reference can spell out how the examination is to run and set deadlines for finishing it. An examiner can issue subpoenas, administer oaths, examine witnesses, and control the calendar, and can recommend contempt proceedings — but unlike a magistrate, an examiner has no power to rule on the admissibility of evidence or decide objections. When a party or witness refuses to answer on privilege or another ground, the examiner refers the question to the court at a party's request, and the court hears and decides it promptly, with costs awarded as justice requires; failing to object at all waives the point for later exceptions. Proceedings before an examiner are recorded, stenographically or electronically, unless the court orders otherwise. In divorce or annulment cases, the examiner has to stay in the hearing room for the entire taking of testimony and certify that fact when submitting the record — a safeguard tied to the family-law context these hearings often involve.

Once the examination wraps up, everything gets transcribed unless the court orders otherwise, and the examiner collects the transcripts and exhibits, certifies them as authentic and complete, and files them with the court, noting any irregularities along the way. Parties get ten days after the filing date to inspect the record. A party then has ten days to except to the record's accuracy, completeness, or authenticity, or to raise objections that were made before the examiner, again in writing and with particularity. A hearing on those exceptions is available only with the court's leave — a tighter standard than the magistrate rule, where a hearing follows automatically from a timely request.