Litigation Lawyers in Sturtevant

Civil depositions occur during Sturtevant, Wisconsin civil litigation, as part of the discovery process.

"Discovery" is a process that occurs before a trial in Sturtevant, Wisconsin. During the discovery process, both sides are required to make relevant information available to each other.

In Sturtevant, Wisconsin, one way to acquire this information is to find the people involved in the dispute (whether they're witnesses or parties), and ask them questions about the issues you believe them to have knowledge of. A civil deposition is normally a pretty simple process: the person being deposed is sworn in (they are under oath, just as if they were in a courtroom). Because the whole point of a deposition is to get testimony on the record, a stenographer or video technician will also be present, recording the whole deposition. The lawyer then asks questions of the witness, and the lawyers for the other side are able to object to particular lines of questioning, if they wish.

Conducting A Civil Deposition in Sturtevant, Wisconsin

Depositions in Sturtevant, Wisconsin 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.

It should not be any surprise, then, that civil depositions in Sturtevant, Wisconsin can go on for a very long time. If you are called to appear in a deposition in Sturtevant, Wisconsin, this can be a massive headache.

Because of this fact, the law in Sturtevant, Wisconsin 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 particular way ceases to be compensation, and becomes bribery, which is a crime.

If you are called to a deposition in Sturtevant, Wisconsin, it's absolutely necessary 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 Sturtevant, Wisconsin Lawyer Help?

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