Litigation Lawyers in Zionsville

A civil deposition in Zionsville, Indiana occurs in many civil litigation cases, as part of the discovery process.

In Zionsville, Indiana, "discovery" is a process that occurs before a civil trial, during which both sides are required to disclose relevant evidence to the other.

One of the most effective ways to acquire information relevant to a lawsuit in Zionsville, Indiana 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 person 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 primarily 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 Zionsville, Indiana

If the parties believe that a witness in Zionsville, Indiana won't be able to show up in court to testify during trial, because of age, poor health, upcoming military deployment, potential incarceration, or any other reason, a deposition is a very good way to get their testimony on the record before the trial. Furthermore, if they have to be questioned for several days, it is a good way to save the court's time.

It should not be any surprise, then, that civil depositions in Zionsville, Indiana can go on for a very long time. If you are called to appear in a deposition in Zionsville, Indiana, this can be a massive headache.

To mitigate this, the law of Zionsville, Indiana normally entitles people being deposed to reimbursement. They can be compensated for travel expenses, lodging, and a can be given a small amount of money simply for their time. However, this is meant to be reimbursement for the time and expense incurred in attending a deposition, and it is most definitely not payment for the witness to give testimony that's beneficial to one side or the other.

When giving a deposition in Zionsville, Indiana, be sure to answer all of the questions honestly, and to the absolute best of your knowledge. You will be sworn in before the deposition begins, and you will be under oath, just as if you were in open court. Therefore, if you lie, you are committing perjury, which can land you in jail.

How Can A Zionsville, Indiana Lawyer Help?

If you are directly immersed in a lawsuit in Zionsville, Indiana, and have to appear at a deposition, you should already be represented by a lawyer. It goes without saying that you should do whatever they advise you to do during the deposition.

If you're not a party to a lawsuit in Zionsville, Indiana, but have knowledge about some of the facts that are at issue in a pending case, you might still be called to appear in a deposition. In that case, you probably don't need to hire a lawyer.