A deposition is a statement taken under oath. The witness has a lawyer, and the opposing lawyer asks questions. There is a court reporter who writes everything down. Lasting from an hour to several hours, with breaks, it takes place in a conference room, not a court.
The written statement can be used as evidence at trial. Its most common use, however, is by the lawyers and insurance company, who use it to form conclusions about settling the claim.
It is common to take depositions of an accident victim and the people who are being sued. If a witness is expected to testify to something that is extremely important, that it is mandatory to take the deposition of that witness.
Depositions are the most expensive proceedings, other than the trial itself. A deposition may involve travel, compensating a witness for loss of income, and always requires payment to the court reporter. A technical deposition (i.e., a statement from a doctor or other expert witness) may cost as much as $1,500.00 per day just for the court reporter. A lay witness deposition might cost half of that.
Every state has rules concerning the "who, what, when, where and how" of depositions. For example, in California a deposition has to take place either within 75 miles of the deponent's residence, or within the county where the action is pending and within 150 miles of the deponent's residence.
www.dogbitelaw.com and each of its sections and products, including Dog Bite Law, The Dog Bite Law Adviser, Dog Bite Litigation Forms, What To Do If Your Dog Is Injured Or Killed, Avoiding Liability When You Train, Shelter or Adopt-Out, Anatomy of a Dog Bite Case, and the foregoing text, are (c) 1999-2008 Kenneth M. Phillips. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part prohibited except where advance permission is granted in writing. Please read the disclaimer and our rules for linking and quoting. Reporters seeking interviews are welcome to click here. |