Litigation Lawyers in Pleasant Garden

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

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

In Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, one way to acquire relevant evidence is to ask persons 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 Pleasant Garden, North Carolina

If the parties believe that a witness in Pleasant Garden, 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. Additionally, if they have to be questioned for several days, it is a good way to save the court's time.

Pleasant Garden, North Carolina 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 Pleasant Garden, North Carolina civil deposition, this could prove to be incredibly inconvenient.

To help mitigate this inconvenience, Pleasant Garden, North Carolina permits witnesses who are appearing in depositions to be paid a set amount of money for their time, and reimbursed for travel expenses. However, if there is any evidence that this money is being used to influence a witness' testimony, there is going to be a serious problem: this would amount bribery, and it is a serious offense.

If you are called to a deposition in Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, it's absolutely imperative 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 Pleasant Garden, North Carolina Lawyer Help?

If you're a party to a Pleasant Garden, 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, on the other hand, you're not directly engaged in the case, but have been subpoenaed to appear in a deposition as a witness in Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, you may not need to hire a lawyer. The lawyers for both sides will probably prep you for the deposition, giving you an idea of what to expect.