Litigation Lawyers in North Smithfield

Depositions are part of the discovery procedure in North Smithfield, Rhode Island civil litigation.

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

One of the most effective ways to obtain information relevant to a lawsuit in North Smithfield, Rhode Island is to conduct a deposition of a party who you believe to be privy to that information. A deposition is a Q&A session between an attorney representing one of the parties to a lawsuit, and someone who has knowledge relevant to the lawsuit. This can be one of the parties, or a witness. The individual being deposed is sworn in, and must answer all of the questions presented to them under oath. An attorney representing the other side can object to lines of questioning, on every grounds that would be valid during in-court testimony. The purpose of this is mainly to get the objection on the record, but if it proves to be a major sticking point, a judge can rule on the objections later. If any questions are found to be invalid, the questions, and their answers, will not be shown to the jury during trial. This is much more effective than simply instructing the jury to disregard a question and answer they've already heard.

Conducting A Civil Deposition in North Smithfield, Rhode Island

Depositions in North Smithfield, Rhode Island serve a very significant purpose: obtaining testimony on the record, and admitted as evidence, when there is some reason to suspect that the witness won't be able to appear in court during trial, because of health, possible incarceration, or any other reason.

Civil Depositions in North Smithfield, Rhode Island, can take a very long time to be completed, typically lasting several days, and occasionally going on for weeks. So, people who are called to give depositions in North Smithfield, Rhode Island should be ready for some substantial inconvenience.

To mitigate this, the law of North Smithfield, Rhode Island typically entitles people being deposed to reimbursement. They can be compensated for travel expenses, lodging, and a can be given a small amount of money simply for their time. However, this is meant to be reimbursement for the time and expense incurred in attending a deposition, and it is most definitely not payment for the witness to provide testimony that's advantageous to one side or the other.

When giving a deposition in North Smithfield, Rhode Island, be sure to answer all of the questions honestly, and to the absolute best of your knowledge. You will be sworn in before the deposition starts, and you will be under oath, just as if you were in open court. Thus, if you lie, you are committing perjury, which can land you in jail.

How Can A North Smithfield, Rhode Island Lawyer Help?

If you are the defendant or plaintiff in a lawsuit, chances are good that you'll have to appear in a deposition. You should, by this time, already be represented by a North Smithfield, Rhode Island civil litigation attorney. You should do whatever they tell you to do (unless, of course, they tell you to lie, in that case you should find a new lawyer).

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 North Smithfield, Rhode Island. 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.