Litigation Lawyers in Mills River

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

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

In Mills River, North Carolina, 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 Mills River, North Carolina

If the parties believe that a witness in Mills River, North Carolina won't be able to show up in court to testify during trial, because of age, poor health, upcoming military deployment, potential incarceration, or any other reason, a deposition is a very good way to get their testimony on the record before the trial. Furthermore, if they have to be questioned for several days, it is a good way to save the court's time.

It should not be any surprise, then, that civil depositions in Mills River, North Carolina can go on for a very long time. If you are called to appear in a deposition in Mills River, North Carolina, this can be a massive headache.

To mitigate this, the law of Mills River, North Carolina 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.

Remember, when you give a deposition in Mills River, 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 Mills River, North Carolina Lawyer Help?

If you're a party to a Mills River, North Carolina 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'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 Mills River, 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.