What happens if a party fails to comply with a request for production of documents?

When a party fails to comply with a request for production of documents, the correct outcome is that they may face sanctions or court orders. In legal proceedings, requests for production are part of the discovery process, which is designed to ensure that both parties have access to the information necessary to prepare their cases. Noncompliance can hinder this process and affect the fairness of the trial.

Sanctions can take various forms, such as fines, adverse inference rulings (where the court assumes that the missing evidence would have been unfavorable to the non-compliant party), or even restrictions on the non-compliant party's ability to present certain evidence during the trial. Courts take such noncompliance seriously because it can obstruct justice and delay the proceedings.

While it is true that dismissals or other severe penalties can occur in extreme cases of noncompliance, they are not automatic outcomes and depend on the nature of the noncompliance and the specific circumstances surrounding the case. Therefore, the possibility of sanctions or court orders most accurately reflects the consequences of failing to respond appropriately to a request for production of documents.