Litigation Lawyers in Southold

Civil depositions happen during civil litigation in Southold, New York. They are part of the discovery procedure.

The discovery procedure in Southold, New York is one of the most significant parts of the civil litigation process. During the discovery phase, each side of the lawsuit is obligated to make all of the relevant information it has in its possession available to the other side.

One way to obtain this information in Southold, New York 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 Southold, New York

Depositions in Southold, New York 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.

Southold, New York 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 Southold, New York civil deposition, this could prove to be incredibly inconvenient.

To help mitigate this inconvenience, Southold, New York allows 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 significant problem: this would amount bribery, and it is a serious offense.

If you are being deposed in Southold, New York you absolutely must answer all the questions truthfully and completely, to the best of your knowledge. You are under oath, and if you lie, and are caught, you could be prosecuted with perjury, which can carry jail time.

How Can A Southold, New York Lawyer Help?

If you're a party to a Southold, New York lawsuit and are obligated 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 are not a party to the lawsuit, but are subpoenaed to testify in a deposition, you should at least contact with a Southold, New York attorney, who can advise you on how to proceed.