Litigation Lawyers in Litchfield Park

In Litchfield Park, Arizona, a civil deposition is a part of the discovery procedure in civil litigation.

"Discovery" is a procedure that happens before a trial in Litchfield Park, Arizona. During the discovery process, both sides are obligated to make relevant information available to each other.

One of the most effective ways to receive information relevant to a lawsuit in Litchfield Park, Arizona is to conduct a deposition of a party who you believe to be privy to that information. A deposition is a Q&A session between an attorney representing one of the parties to a lawsuit, and someone who has knowledge relevant to the lawsuit. This can be one of the parties, or a witness. The individual being deposed is sworn in, and must answer all of the questions presented to them under oath. An attorney representing the other side can object to lines of questioning, on every grounds that would be valid during in-court testimony. The purpose of this is mainly to get the objection on the record, but if it proves to be a major sticking point, a judge can rule on the objections later. If any questions are found to be invalid, the questions, and their answers, will not be shown to the jury during trial. This is much more effective than simply instructing the jury to disregard a question and answer they've already heard.

Conducting A Civil Deposition in Litchfield Park, Arizona

Depositions in Litchfield Park, Arizona serve a very significant purpose: receiving testimony on the record, and admitted as evidence, when there is some reason to suspect that the witness won't be able to appear in court during trial, because of health, possible incarceration, or any other reason.

Civil Depositions in Litchfield Park, Arizona, can take a very long time to be completed, usually lasting several days, and occasionally going on for weeks. So, people who are called to give depositions in Litchfield Park, Arizona should be ready for some significant inconvenience.

To help deal with this fact, Litchfield Park, Arizona permits witnesses who are being deposed to be compensated for their time. They can be reimbursed for lodging, travel expenses, and given a small amount of money for their time. Remember, however, that this money is most definitely NOT conditioned on the witness giving testimony that's favorable to one side, and omitting information that's unfavorable. This would be bribery, and it is highly illegal.

Remember, when you give a deposition in Litchfield Park, Arizona, you're under oath. This means that you are under an absolute requirement to tell the truth. If you deliberately lie while under oath, you are committing perjury. Perjury is a serious crime, and can be punished by fines and imprisonment.

How Can A Litchfield Park, Arizona Lawyer Help?

If you are the plaintiff or defendant in a lawsuit, you almost definitely already have a Litchfield Park, Arizona lawyer. If either party to the lawsuit calls you for a deposition, your lawyer will have plenty of advice for you. You should, of course, follow that advice to the letter.

If you're not a party to the case, but have relevant information, you might be subpoenaed to appear in a deposition. In this case, you likely don't need to hire a Litchfield Park, Arizona litigation attorney, but it would not be a bad idea to seek out a brief consultation with one, to get an idea of what to expect.