Litigation Lawyers in Greenville

A civil deposition in Greenville, Michigan happens in many civil litigation cases, as part of the discovery procedure.

The discovery procedure in Greenville, Michigan is one of the most significant parts of the civil litigation process. During the discovery phase, each side of the lawsuit is obligated to make all of the relevant information it has in its possession available to the other side.

In Greenville, Michigan, one way to obtain relevant evidence is to ask people 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 Greenville, Michigan

In Greenville, 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. Also, 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 bad health, or any other reason.

Greenville, Michigan civil depositions can go on for a long time - sometimes going for a week or more. If you get subpoenaed to provide your testimony in a Greenville, Michigan civil deposition, this could prove to be incredibly inconvenient.

Thus, Greenville, Michigan's civil procedure rules allow a person to be compensated for the time and money they spend in appearing at a deposition. If the witness lives far away from the location of the deposition, as is occasionally the case in large trials, they can be reimbursed for travel and lodging expenses, and compensated for their time. However, this money cannot be used to influence HOW they testify, just to mitigate the inconvenience linked with testifying.

If you are being deposed in Greenville, 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 prosecuted with perjury, which can carry jail time.

How Can A Greenville, Michigan Lawyer Help?

If you are the defendant or plaintiff in a lawsuit, chances are good that you'll have to appear in a deposition. You should, by this time, already be represented by a Greenville, Michigan civil litigation attorney. You should do whatever they tell you to do (unless, of course, they tell you to lie, in that case you should find a new lawyer).

If you are not a party to the lawsuit, but are subpoenaed to testify in a deposition, you should at least contact with a Greenville, Michigan attorney, who can advise you on how to proceed.