Litigation Lawyers in North Braddock

Depositions are part of the discovery process in North Braddock, Pennsylvania civil litigation.

"Discovery" is a process that occurs before a trial in North Braddock, Pennsylvania. During the discovery process, both sides are required to make relevant information available to each other.

In North Braddock, Pennsylvania, one way to acquire this information is to find the people involved in the dispute (whether they're witnesses or parties), and ask them questions about the issues you believe them to have knowledge of. A civil deposition is usually a pretty simple process: the person being deposed is sworn in (they are under oath, just as if they were in a courtroom). Because the whole point of a deposition is to get testimony on the record, a stenographer or video technician will also be present, recording the whole deposition. The lawyer then asks questions of the witness, and the lawyers for the other side are able to object to certain lines of questioning, if they wish.

Conducting A Civil Deposition in North Braddock, Pennsylvania

Depositions in North Braddock, Pennsylvania are meant to get verbal testimony on the record and into evidence, when there is concern that the person being deposed might be unable to show up and testify at trial, or their testimony will take far too long for them to testify at trial.

Civil Depositions in North Braddock, Pennsylvania, can take a very long time to be completed, usually lasting several days, and sometimes going on for weeks. So, people who are called to give depositions in North Braddock, Pennsylvania should be prepared for some significant inconvenience.

To help mitigate this inconvenience, North Braddock, Pennsylvania allows witnesses who are appearing in depositions to be paid a set amount of money for their time, and reimbursed for travel expenses. However, if there is any evidence that this money is being used to influence a witness' testimony, there is going to be a serious problem: this would amount bribery, and it is a serious offense.

If you are being deposed in North Braddock, Pennsylvania you absolutely must answer all the questions truthfully and completely, to the best of your knowledge. You are under oath, and if you lie, and are caught, you could be charged with perjury, which can carry jail time.

How Can A North Braddock, Pennsylvania Lawyer Help?

If you are the plaintiff or defendant in a lawsuit, you almost certainly already have a North Braddock, Pennsylvania 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 are not a party to the case, but are subpoenaed to testify in a deposition, you should at least consult with a North Braddock, Pennsylvania attorney, who can advise you on how to proceed.