Litigation Lawyers in Anthony

Depositions are part of the discovery procedure in Anthony, Texas civil litigation.

In Anthony, Texas, "discovery" is a time-consuming process that happens before a case goes to trial. In the process, each side of the lawsuit is legally obligated to disclose all of the relevant information they have in their possession to the other side.

One of the most effective ways to receive information relevant to a lawsuit in Anthony, Texas 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 Anthony, Texas

Depositions in Anthony, Texas 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.

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

Because of this fact, the law in Anthony, Texas 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 certain way ceases to be compensation, and becomes bribery, which is a crime.

If you are called to a deposition in Anthony, Texas, 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 Anthony, Texas Lawyer Help?

If you are directly involved in a lawsuit in Anthony, Texas, 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 are not directly involved in the lawsuit, you might still have to appear at a deposition, if you have information that's relevant to the case in Anthony, Texas. 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.