Litigation Lawyers in Lewistown

Depositions are part of the discovery procedure in Lewistown, Pennsylvania civil litigation.

"Discovery" is a procedure that happens before a trial in Lewistown, Pennsylvania. During the discovery process, both sides are obligated to make relevant information available to each other.

In Lewistown, Pennsylvania, 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 Lewistown, Pennsylvania

Depositions are typically conducted in Lewistown, Pennsylvania if a person's testimony will take several days, or more, to deliver. By doing this before a trial, the jury can be presented just with the testimony that turns out to be relevant, saving everyone a good deal of time. It is also useful if there is any reason to suspect that the witness will be unable to show up in court.

It should not be any shock, then, that civil depositions in Lewistown, Pennsylvania can go on for a very long time. If you are contacted to appear in a deposition in Lewistown, Pennsylvania, this can be a huge headache.

Because of this fact, the law in Lewistown, Pennsylvania permits 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 specific way ceases to be compensation, and becomes bribery, which is a crime.

If you are called to a deposition in Lewistown, Pennsylvania, 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 Lewistown, Pennsylvania Lawyer Help?

If you are directly engaged in a lawsuit in Lewistown, Pennsylvania, and have to appear at a deposition, you should already be represented by a lawyer. It goes without saying that you should do whatever they advise you to do throughout the deposition.

If you're not a party to a lawsuit in Lewistown, Pennsylvania, but have knowledge about some of the facts that are at issue in a pending case, you might still be contacted to appear in a deposition. In that case, you likely don't need to hire a lawyer.