10.71—Discovery.
(a) In general.
Discovery may be
permitted, at the discretion of the Administrative
Law Judge, only upon written motion demonstrating
the relevance, materiality and reasonableness of
the requested discovery and subject to the
requirements of § 10.72(d)(2) and (3). Within 10
days of receipt of the answer, the Administrative
Law Judge will notify the parties of the right to
request discovery and the timeframes for filing a
request. A request for discovery, and objections,
must be filed in accordance with § 10.68. In
response to a request for discovery, the
Administrative Law Judge may order—
(b)
Depositions upon oral
examination —(1) A deposition must be taken
before an officer duly authorized to administer an
oath for general purposes or before an officer or
employee of the Internal Revenue Service who is
authorized to administer an oath in Federal tax
law matters.
(2)
In ordering a deposition, the
Administrative Law Judge will require reasonable
notice to the opposing party as to the time and
place of the deposition. The opposing party, if
attending, will be provided the opportunity for
full examination and cross-examination of any
witness.
(3)
Expenses in the reporting of depositions
shall be borne by the party at whose instance the
deposition is taken. Travel expenses of the
deponent shall be borne by the party requesting
the deposition, unless otherwise authorized by
Federal law or regulation.
(c) Requests for admission.
Any
party may serve on any other party a written
request for admission of the truth of any matters
which are not privileged and are relevant to the
subject matter of this proceeding. Requests for
admission shall not exceed a total of 30
(including any subparts within a specific request)
without the approval from the Administrative Law
Judge.
(7)
The material sought relates to mental
impressions, conclusions, or legal theories of any
party, attorney, or other representative, of a
party prepared in anticipation of a proceeding;
or
(8)
The material sought is available generally
to the public, equally to the parties, or to the
party seeking the discovery through another
source.
(e) Failure to comply.
Where a
party fails to comply with an order of the
Administrative Law Judge under this section, the
Administrative Law Judge may, among other things,
infer that the information would be adverse to the
party failing to provide it, exclude the
information from evidence or issue a decision by
default.
(f) Other discovery.
No discovery
other than that specifically provided for in this
section is permitted.
(g) Effective/applicability date.
This section is applicable to proceedings
initiated on or after September 26, 2007.