Litigation Lawyers in Garden City

A civil deposition in Garden City, Michigan occurs in many civil litigation cases, as part of the discovery process.

The discovery process in Garden City, Michigan is one of the most important parts of the civil litigation process. During the discovery phase, each side of the lawsuit is required to make all of the relevant information it has in its possession available to the other side.

In Garden City, Michigan, one way to get relevant evidence is to ask individuals involved in the dispute (both parties and witnesses) about their knowledge of the matter. This is done through a civil deposition. It is essentially a question and answer session between a lawyer, and a witness or party to the action. A lawyer for the other side is present, as well as a court reporter or videographer. The lawyer asks questions of the person being deposed, who must answer them under oath.

Conducting A Civil Deposition in Garden City, Michigan

In Garden City, Michigan, the main reason to conduct a deposition, as opposed to having someone testify in court, is to save time. After days of depositions, the jury can be presented with just the relevant testimony, if the case goes to trial. Furthermore, it's a good idea to conduct a deposition if there's any reason to believe that the witness will not be able to show up to court to testify, due to poor health, or any other reason.

Garden City, Michigan 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 Garden City, Michigan civil deposition, this could prove to be incredibly inconvenient.

To mitigate this, the law of Garden City, Michigan 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.

If you are being deposed in Garden City, Michigan 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 Garden City, Michigan Lawyer Help?

If you're a party to a Garden City, Michigan lawsuit and are required to appear at a deposition, one would hope that you've already retained a lawyer by this stage in the proceedings. Your attorney will have a lot of advice for you, which you should of course follow.

If you are not a party to the case, but are subpoenaed to testify in a deposition, you should at least consult with a Garden City, Michigan attorney, who can advise you on how to proceed.