Litigation Lawyers in Hope Mills

Civil depositions occur during civil litigation in Hope Mills, North Carolina. They are part of the discovery process.

"Discovery" is a process that occurs before a trial in Hope Mills, North Carolina. During the discovery process, both sides are required to make relevant information available to each other.

In Hope Mills, North Carolina, 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 Hope Mills, North Carolina

Depositions in Hope Mills, North Carolina serve a very important purpose: getting testimony on the record, and admitted as evidence, when there is some reason to suspect that the witness won't be able to appear in court during trial, because of health, potential incarceration, or any other reason.

Civil Depositions in Hope Mills, North Carolina, can take a very long time to be completed, usually lasting several days, and sometimes going on for weeks. So, people who are called to give depositions in Hope Mills, North Carolina should be prepared for some significant inconvenience.

To mitigate this, the law of Hope Mills, North Carolina usually 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 favorable to one side or the other.

Remember, when you give a deposition in Hope Mills, North Carolina, you're under oath. This means that you are under an absolute obligation to tell the truth. If you deliberately lie while under oath, you are committing perjury. Perjury is a serious crime, and can be punished by fines and imprisonment.

How Can A Hope Mills, North Carolina Lawyer Help?

If you are the plaintiff or defendant in a lawsuit, you almost certainly already have a Hope Mills, North Carolina lawyer. If either party to the lawsuit calls you for a deposition, your lawyer will have plenty of advice for you. You should, of course, follow that advice to the letter.

If you're not a party to the case, but have relevant information, you might be subpoenaed to appear in a deposition. In this case, you probably don't need to hire a Hope Mills, North Carolina litigation attorney, but it would not be a bad idea to seek out a brief consultation with one, to get an idea of what to expect.