Litigation Lawyers in Dona Ana County

Civil depositions happen during civil litigation in Dona Ana County, New Mexico. They are part of the discovery procedure.

Discovery, in Dona Ana County, New Mexico is a very critical step in the civil litigation process. It is when all of the relevant evidence is gathered by both sides, and, generally, each side must disclose that evidence to the other.

One way to acquire this information in Dona Ana County, New Mexico is to simply sit down with someone involved in the dispute, or with knowledge of some of the issues, and ask them questions. This can be done through a civil deposition, which is basically a Q&A session between a lawyer, and the person being deposed. A lawyer for the other side will also be present. The person being deposed is answering their questions under oath, just as if they were testifying in court. Because of this, it's important to get their statements on the record. For that purpose, a court reporter or videographer will be present.

Conducting A Civil Deposition in Dona Ana County, New Mexico

Depositions in Dona Ana County, New Mexico are meant to get verbal testimony on the record and into evidence, when there is concern that the individual being deposed might be unable to show up and testify at trial, or their testimony will take far too long for them to testify at trial.

Dona Ana County, New Mexico 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 Dona Ana County, New Mexico civil deposition, this could prove to be incredibly inconvenient.

Thus, Dona Ana County, New Mexico's civil procedure rules permit 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.

Remember, when you give a deposition in Dona Ana County, New Mexico, you're under oath. This means that you are under an absolute requirement 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 Dona Ana County, New Mexico Lawyer Help?

If you are the plaintiff or defendant in a lawsuit, you almost definitely already have a Dona Ana County, New Mexico 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 are not directly engaged in the lawsuit, you might still have to appear at a deposition, if you have information that's relevant to the case in Dona Ana County, New Mexico. You likely don't need to hire a lawyer in that case, but it might be a good idea to at least get a consultation from one.