Litigation Lawyers in Suffern

Civil depositions occur during civil litigation in Suffern, New York. They are part of the discovery process.

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

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

Depositions in Suffern, New York are meant to get verbal testimony on the record and into evidence, when there is concern that the person 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.

Civil Depositions in Suffern, New York, 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 Suffern, New York should be prepared for some significant inconvenience.

Because of this fact, the law in Suffern, New York allows witnesses who are appearing for depositions to be compensated for the expense associated with it. This includes reimbursement for gas, lodging, and food. They can also be paid a certain amount of money for every hour they testify, to compensate them for their time. However, this money can only be conditioned on the witness showing up and giving truthful testimony. Trying to condition it on the witness testifying in a certain way ceases to be compensation, and becomes bribery, which is a crime.

If you are called to a deposition in Suffern, New York, it's absolutely essential 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 Suffern, New York Lawyer Help?

If you're a party to a Suffern, New York 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 involved in the case, but have been subpoenaed to appear in a deposition as a witness in Suffern, New York, 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.