Litigation Lawyers in Crossville

Depositions are part of the discovery process in Crossville, Tennessee civil litigation.

In Crossville, Tennessee, "discovery" is a time-consuming procedure that occurs before a case goes to trial. In the process, each side of the lawsuit is legally required to disclose all of the relevant information they have in their possession to the other side.

One way to acquire this information in Crossville, Tennessee 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 Crossville, Tennessee

Depositions in Crossville, Tennessee 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 Crossville, Tennessee, can take a very long time to be completed, typically lasting several days, and sometimes going on for weeks. So, people who are called to give depositions in Crossville, Tennessee should be prepared for some substantial inconvenience.

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

Remember, when you give a deposition in Crossville, Tennessee, you're under oath. This means that you are under an absolute obligation 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 Crossville, Tennessee Lawyer Help?

If you're a party to a Crossville, Tennessee 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 engaged in the case, but have been subpoenaed to appear in a deposition as a witness in Crossville, Tennessee, 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.