Discovery Meet-and-Confer Letter

DISCOVERY MEET-AND-CONFER LETTER

(Initial Planning Conference Request — Pre-Dispute)

State of Texas

[LAW FIRM LETTERHEAD]
[Firm Name]
[Address Line 1]
[Address Line 2]
[City, State, ZIP]
[Phone] | [Fax] | [Email]

[__/__/____]

VIA: ☐ Email ☐ U.S. Mail ☐ Overnight Courier ☐ Hand Delivery

[Opposing Counsel Name]
[Law Firm Name]
[Address Line 1]
[Address Line 2]
[City, State, ZIP]

Re: [Case Name], [Court Name], Cause No. [________________________________]
Re: Discovery Meet-and-Confer and Discovery Control Plan — Tex. R. Civ. P. 191.2 and 190

Dear [Opposing Counsel Name]:

PURPOSE OF THIS LETTER

We write on behalf of our client, [________________________________], pursuant to Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 191.2, to request a discovery planning conference in the above-referenced matter. This letter is not a discovery deficiency letter. Its purpose is to proactively establish an efficient, cooperative, and proportionate framework for discovery before any disputes require court intervention.

Key Features of Texas Discovery Practice:

1. Discovery Levels (Rule 190): Every Texas civil action is assigned to a discovery control plan at one of three levels: Level 1 (expedited actions), Level 2 (default for all other cases), or Level 3 (complex cases or cases with more than $1,000,000 at issue). The level determines discovery limits, the discovery period, and other parameters. We must confirm the appropriate level.

2. Meet-and-Confer Requirement (Rule 191.2): Texas Rule 191.2 requires parties to cooperate in discovery. Before filing any discovery motion, the movant must certify that it made a "reasonable effort" to resolve the dispute. Courts have interpreted "reasonable effort" to require actual telephone or in-person discussion — not merely correspondence.

3. Requests for Disclosure (Rule 194): Texas automatically requires each party to disclose, upon request, basic information about the case (names of witnesses, legal theories, damage calculations, trial witnesses, indemnification agreements, etc.) within 30 days of service of a request. We may discuss whether to exchange disclosures voluntarily without a formal request.

4. No Mandatory Initial Disclosures: Texas state court does not have mandatory initial disclosures equivalent to Federal Rule 26(a). Disclosures are initiated by formal requests under Rule 194.

We propose scheduling a discovery planning conference and submit the following agenda for your review.

CURRENT CASE POSTURE

• Date Suit Filed: [__/__/____]
• Date Answer Filed: [__/__/____]
• Discovery Control Plan Level (current): ☐ Level 1 ☐ Level 2 ☐ Level 3 ☐ To be determined
• Discovery Period (by level):
• Level 1: Commences when suit is filed; ends 180 days after first discovery request served
• Level 2: Discovery period runs from date suit is filed to 30 days before trial
• Level 3: Per court order
• Trial Date: [__/__/____]
• Mediation/ADR: ☐ Court-ordered ☐ Agreed ☐ Not yet scheduled

SECTION 1: DISCOVERY CONTROL PLAN AND LEVEL CONFIRMATION

Under Texas Rule 190, the discovery level determines:

☐ Parties agree the case should be governed by Level [____].
☐ Parties agree to file a joint Level 3 discovery control plan by [__/__/____].
☐ Parties disagree on level — to be addressed at conference.

SECTION 2: REQUESTS FOR DISCLOSURE (RULE 194)

Texas Rule 194 allows any party to require another party to disclose, within 30 days, basic case information including:

• (a) correct name of parties;
• (b) names, addresses, and phone numbers of potential parties;
• (c) legal theories and, in general, the factual bases of the responding party's claims or defenses;
• (d) the amount and calculation of economic damages;
• (e) names, addresses, and phone numbers of persons having knowledge of relevant facts and a brief statement of each person's connection to the case;
• (f) information relating to any testifying expert;
• (g) any indemnification and insuring agreements;
• (h) any settlement agreements;
• (i) any witness statements.

☐ Party A has served Requests for Disclosure on [__/__/____] — responses due [__/__/____].
☐ Party A has not yet served Requests for Disclosure — propose serving by [__/__/____].
☐ Party B has served Requests for Disclosure on [__/__/____] — responses due [__/__/____].
☐ Party B has not yet served Requests for Disclosure — propose serving by [__/__/____].
☐ Parties agree to exchange Rule 194 disclosure responses voluntarily without formal service by [__/__/____].

SECTION 3: PROPOSED DISCOVERY CONFERENCE AGENDA

A. Claims, Defenses, and Early Resolution

☐ Summary of each party's principal claims and defenses
☐ Threshold legal and factual issues
☐ Settlement possibilities and ADR timing (many Texas courts require mediation)
☐ Whether early partial summary judgment motions would benefit both sides

B. Discovery Control Plan and Level

☐ Confirm appropriate discovery level
☐ If Level 3: agree on deposition hours, interrogatory limits, and discovery period
☐ Discuss any anticipated need for protective order regarding discovery limits

C. Scope of Discovery

☐ Relevant time period: [________________________________]
☐ Key custodians and document sources
☐ Topics for anticipated depositions
☐ Whether phased discovery (liability then damages) is appropriate: ☐ Yes ☐ No
☐ Proportionality: amount in controversy, relative access to information, burden

D. Electronically Stored Information (ESI)

Texas does not have a separate ESI rule, but ESI is discoverable under Rule 192 as documents and tangible things. Proactive ESI agreements are strongly recommended.

☐ ESI custodians (anticipated: [____] per side)
☐ Data sources: ☐ Email ☐ Network drives ☐ Mobile/text ☐ Cloud storage ☐ Databases ☐ Social media ☐ Other: [________________________________]
☐ Production format: ☐ Native ☐ TIFF with load file ☐ PDF ☐ Other: [________________________________]
☐ Metadata fields: [________________________________]
☐ De-duplication: [________________________________]
☐ Proposed search terms — exchange by [__/__/____]
☐ Collection date range: from [__/__/____] to [__/__/____]
☐ Stipulated ESI protocol: ☐ To be negotiated

E. Privilege Log and Protective Order

☐ Privilege log format: ☐ Document-by-document ☐ Categorical
☐ Required fields: date, author, recipient, subject, document type, privilege asserted
☐ Inadvertent disclosure/clawback: ☐ Yes ☐ No
☐ Protective order under Texas Rule 192.6: ☐ Yes ☐ No
☐ Deadline to file proposed protective order: [__/__/____]
☐ Sensitive categories: ☐ Trade secrets ☐ PHI ☐ Personnel records ☐ Financial records ☐ Other: [________________________________]

F. Discovery Limits and Scheduling (Confirmation for Level [____])

☐ Total oral deposition hours: [____] hours per side
☐ Interrogatories: [____] per party
☐ Requests for Production: ☐ No limit (proportionality applies) ☐ Limit: [____]
☐ Requests for Admission: ☐ No limit ☐ Limit: [____]
☐ Expert disclosures (initial / rebuttal): [__/__/____] / [__/__/____]
☐ Discovery cutoff: [__/__/____]

G. Deposition Scheduling and Logistics

☐ Priority depositions: [________________________________]
☐ Preferred locations: ☐ Dallas ☐ Houston ☐ Austin ☐ San Antonio ☐ Other: [________________________________]
☐ Remote depositions: ☐ Agreed ☐ Not agreed ☐ Case-by-case
☐ Corporate representative (Rule 199.2(b)(1) notice for organization): ☐ Yes ☐ No
☐ Videotaped depositions: ☐ Yes ☐ No

H. Third-Party Discovery

☐ Anticipated third-party subpoenas (Tex. R. Civ. P. 176): ☐ Yes (identify: [________________________________]) ☐ No
☐ Advance notice of third-party subpoenas: [____] days agreed

I. Preservation and Litigation Hold

☐ Confirm each party has implemented a litigation hold.
☐ Identify data sources subject to auto-deletion.
☐ Agree to provide advance notice before modifying any preservation hold.

J. Meet-and-Confer Process for Future Disputes (Rule 191.2)

Texas Rule 191.2 requires a good faith meet-and-confer before filing any discovery motion. A "reasonable effort" requires actual discussion — not just correspondence.

☐ Agree that any future discovery dispute will be addressed by telephone or video conference within [____] days of written notice.
☐ Agree to exchange written letters identifying issues at least [____] days before any conference.
☐ Agree to submit a joint letter or certification to the court after each meet-and-confer if issues remain unresolved.

SECTION 4: PROPOSED DATES FOR CONFERENCE

We are available on the following dates:

Option 1: [__/__/____] at [____]:00 [____]M (CT)
Option 2: [__/__/____] at [____]:00 [____]M (CT)
Option 3: [__/__/____] at [____]:00 [____]M (CT)

Preferred format: ☐ Telephone ☐ Zoom/Video ☐ In person at: [________________________________]

SECTION 5: REQUEST FOR RESPONSE

Please respond no later than [__/__/____] ([____] days from the date of this letter) to:

1. Confirm availability for the discovery conference;
2. Advise on your client's position on the appropriate discovery control plan level; and
3. Propose any modifications to the agenda.

We look forward to a productive conference and efficient resolution of this matter.

Respectfully submitted,

[________________________________]
[Attorney Name]
[Texas State Bar Number: ____________________]
[Law Firm Name]
[Address]
[Phone] | [Email]
Counsel for [________________________________]

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on [__/__/____], a true and correct copy of the foregoing was served on opposing counsel by:

☐ Electronic service per agreement
☐ U.S. First Class Mail, postage prepaid, to: [________________________________]
☐ Hand delivery to: [________________________________]
☐ Other: [________________________________]

[________________________________]
[Attorney Name]

ATTACHMENTS

☐ Attachment A — Proposed ESI Search Terms
☐ Attachment B — Draft Agreed Protective Order (Texas Rule 192.6)
☐ Attachment C — Draft Discovery Control Plan (Level 3) (if applicable)
☐ Attachment D — Draft Agreed Clawback/Non-Waiver Order

SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Texas Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 190 (Discovery Levels): https://www.txcourts.gov/media/1446498/trcp-all-updated-with-amendments-effective-may-1-2020.pdf
• Texas Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 191.2 (Meet and Confer): https://www.txcourts.gov/
• Texas Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 194 (Requests for Disclosure): https://www.txcourts.gov/
• An Overview of Discovery Rules and Levels in Texas: https://www.ringelbrymerlaw.com/navigating_the_discovery_maze_an_overview_of_discovery_rules_and_levels_in_texas
• Texas Courts Online: https://www.txcourts.gov/