Litigation Lawyers in Ham Lake

A civil deposition in Ham Lake, Minnesota occurs in many civil litigation cases, as part of the discovery process.

The discovery process in Ham Lake, Minnesota 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 Ham Lake, Minnesota, one way to get 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 normally 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 particular lines of questioning, if they wish.

Conducting A Civil Deposition in Ham Lake, Minnesota

In Ham Lake, Minnesota, 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.

Civil Depositions in Ham Lake, Minnesota can sometimes go on for days, and occasionally even weeks. If you are required to appear for a deposition in Ham Lake, Minnesota, it can prove to be a considerable inconvenience.

Therefore, Ham Lake, Minnesota's civil procedure rules authorize 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 sometimes 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 associated with testifying.

If you are called to a deposition in Ham Lake, Minnesota, it's absolutely necessary that you answer all the questions truthfully, to the best of your knowledge. When testifying in a deposition, you are under oath, just as you would be in open court. Deliberately lying in a deposition is perjury, which is a serious crime.

How Can A Ham Lake, Minnesota Lawyer Help?

If you are directly immersed in a lawsuit in Ham Lake, Minnesota, 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 Ham Lake, Minnesota, 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.