TITLE FIVE — DEPOSITION AND DISCOVERY
Rule 22. Stipulations Regarding Discovery Procedure
Authority to Stipulate. Unless the court orders otherwise, the parties may by written stipulation:
provide that a deposition may be taken before any person, at any time or place or in any channel, upon any notice, and in any manner, and when so taken it may be used like any other deposition;
modify the procedures provided by these rules for any other method of discovery, including the number of interrogatories, requests for production, and requests for admission, and the time within which a response is required; and
agree upon a procedure for asserting a claim of privilege or of protection as trial-preparation material after production, and upon the form or forms in which electronically stored information is to be produced.
Form; When Effective. A stipulation under this rule shall be in writing and shall be served as Rule 19(12) requires, or shall be made orally upon the record of a deposition, or shall be stated in the proceeding communications by each party or the attorney of record for each party. A stipulation takes effect upon the assent of every party affected by it. A stipulation tendered to the electronic filing system under the stipulation filing code takes effect upon assent and service, and not upon acceptance by the Clerk; acceptance places it upon the docket but is not a condition of its operation.
Limits Upon Stipulations. A stipulation under this rule shall not:
extend the pre-trial period allowed by Rule 6(1), continue a hearing, or alter a date set by the court, without leave of court;
enlarge or diminish the authority of the court, or bind the court to receive or exclude evidence at trial;
authorize the disclosure of any matter that an order under Rule 19(7) protects, or relieve a person of an obligation imposed by such an order;
bind a person who is not a party, or impose an obligation upon a person who has not assented to it; or
relieve a party of the duty to preserve electronically stored information under Rule 26(7).
Effect of Non-Compliance. A party who fails to perform a stipulation under this rule is subject to Rule 26.3 to the same extent as if the stipulated procedure had been ordered by the court, provided the stipulation was served or recorded as Rule 22(2) requires.