At the Law Office of William Bruzzo, we represent injured people as an Orange County Personal Injury Lawyer. We can tell you what your notice actually requires. This article is general information, not legal advice.

Can an Insurance Company Require an Independent Medical Examination in California?

Yes, the insurance company defending your claim can require one physical examination, and in a California personal injury case it does not need a judge’s permission. That entitlement comes from Section 2032.220 of the Code of Civil Procedure, on terms narrower than most people assume.

A demand under Section 2032.220 has to meet every one of these conditions:

• It may not include any diagnostic test or procedure that is painful, protracted, or intrusive.
• It must set the examination within 75 miles of where you live.
• It must state the time, place, manner, conditions, scope, and nature of the exam.
• It must identify the examiner by name and field of practice.
• It must be served at least 30 days before the date it sets, unless a court shortens that time.

How Long Do You Have to Respond to an IME Demand?

You have 20 days to respond in writing to a California demand for a physical examination, and under Section 2032.230 that response takes one of three forms:

• Agree to the examination exactly as demanded.
• Agree with stated modifications, such as a closer location or a narrower scope.
• Refuse, and state the reasons for refusing.

Missing that window is the expensive mistake, and most people make it by doing nothing. Under Section 2032.240, a plaintiff who does not respond in time waives all objections to the demand, including distance, scope, and the identity of the doctor.

Relief is available for mistake or excusable neglect, but only if you also serve a compliant response. Refusing an exam the court already ordered is worse, since Section 2032.410 reaches issue, evidence, terminating, and monetary sanctions.

Can Your Attorney Attend and Record a California IME?

Yes, your attorney can be in the room for a physical examination in California, and that right comes from the statute rather than from the insurer’s goodwill. Counsel for the person being examined may attend and observe the exam under Section 2032.510, and may record stenographically or by audio any words spoken to or by the examinee.

The observer can also stop the exam. If the examiner becomes abusive or attempts tests that were not authorized, the observer may suspend the examination and seek a protective order.

Mental Examinations Require a Court Order and Good Cause

No, the defense cannot simply demand a psychological evaluation the way it demands a physical one. A mental examination in a California personal injury case requires a noticed motion, a meet-and-confer declaration, and a finding of good cause under Sections 2032.310 and 2032.320, and the order has to specify:

• The identity of the examiner.
• The time, place, manner, and conditions of the exam.
• The scope, and the diagnostic tests to be used.

There is a way to head one off. If you stipulate that no claim is being made for emotional distress beyond what usually accompanies the physical injuries, and that no retained psychologist will testify about it, the court may not order one absent unusual circumstances.

The recording rules change too, and this is where people assume more protection than exists. Section 2032.530 gives the examiner and the examinee each the right to record a mental examination on audio. It does not carry over the attorney-attendance right, so whether counsel can be present depends on agreement, a court order, and existing case law.

How to Get a Copy of the IME Doctor’s Report

Yes, you are entitled to read what the defense doctor wrote about you, but only if you ask in writing. A demand under Section 2032.610 entitles you to a detailed report, due within 30 days of your demand or 15 days before trial, whichever comes first. It joins the rest of the medical evidence in your case, and it has to set out:

• The history the examiner took from you.
• The findings, including the results of all tests performed.
• The diagnoses and prognoses.
• The examiner’s conclusions.
• The reports of any earlier examinations of the same condition.

The tradeoff is real. Under Section 2032.640, demanding and receiving that report obligates you to deliver the reports of your own practitioners on the same condition, so it is a decision to make deliberately.

There is also a consequence if the defense stonewalls. Section 2032.620 lets you move to compel delivery, and if the court orders the report produced and the defense still does not comply, the examiner’s testimony is excluded at trial.

IME Rules for Service Members Near Camp Pendleton

Two things change when an injured service member near Camp Pendleton is sent to a medical examination, because the California rules do not always govern the case.

Federal Cases Follow FRCP 35, Not California’s IME Rules

When the defendant is a federal agency or employee rather than a civilian driver, the case belongs in federal court, where Rule 35 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure governs examinations instead of CCP 2032. Rule 35 requires a motion and good cause for every exam, sets no mileage limit, and contains no attorney-attendance or recording right at all.

An IME Is Not a Workers’ Compensation QME

An independent medical examination in a civil case and a qualified medical evaluation in workers’ compensation are separate processes under separate codes. The difference is who picks the doctor. A comp dispute runs through Labor Code sections 4060 to 4062.2, which use a state-assigned panel rather than letting the defense choose. Someone with both claims can face both processes in the same year, one more way active duty status changes a claim.

Get an Orange County Personal Injury Lawyer Involved Before the Exam

A 20-day window closes quickly, and it is the step people miss. William Bruzzo has been admitted in California since 1996, and our team can serve the response, press for conditions, and attend the exam with you.

Schedule a free consultation at our Oceanside, Tustin, or Newport Beach office. There is no fee unless we recover for you. Call 760-307-4233. El Abogado Habla Español.