Litigation Lawyers in Presque Isle

A civil deposition in Presque Isle, Maine occurs in many civil litigation cases, as part of the discovery process.

Discovery, in Presque Isle, Maine is a very crucial step in the civil litigation process. It is when all of the relevant evidence is gathered by both sides, and, generally, each side must disclose that evidence to the other.

One of the most effective ways to acquire information relevant to a lawsuit in Presque Isle, Maine 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 Presque Isle, Maine

Depositions in Presque Isle, Maine 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.

Presque Isle, Maine civil depositions can go on for a long time - occasionally going for a week or more. If you get subpoenaed to give your testimony in a Presque Isle, Maine civil deposition, this could prove to be incredibly inconvenient.

To help mitigate this inconvenience, Presque Isle, Maine authorizes 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.

In Presque Isle, Maine depositions, everyone being deposed is under oath. This means that you are legally and morally obligated to answer every question truthfully. If you deliberately misrepresent your knowledge (lie), you are guilty of perjury. And if you're caught, you could end up facing jail time and/or some very steep fines.

How Can A Presque Isle, Maine Lawyer Help?

If you are a party to a lawsuit, and are called to a deposition, chances are you're already represented by a , Maine attorney. Obviously, you should follow their advice with respect to the deposition.

If, on the other hand, you're not directly immersed in the case, but have been subpoenaed to appear in a deposition as a witness in Presque Isle, Maine, you may not need to hire a lawyer. The lawyers for both sides will probably prep you for the deposition, giving you an idea of what to expect.