Deposition Tips for Attorneys

Today I am going to write about tips for attorneys when taking depositions.  I have been a court reporter for 29 years, starting out as a typist for reporters.  Yes, back when erasers were used and carbon sets and actual typewriters.

IBM SELECTRIC

1.  Take business cards with you.  Court reporters need your business card and information, along with an email address.

2.  Introduce yourself to the court reporter.   We may be the silent person in the room, but we do like to know that you know we're there.  Ask if the reporter has the style of the case or a notice.  Offer up unusual spellings or proper names. 

3.  Prepare your deposition questions ahead of time.  I know it's got to be hard to know which questions you need to ask, and it's not unusual to forget a few questions.  It's okay to come in with a list of your questions.  Personally, if I see an attorney with 15 pages of questions, I know we are going to be there for a while and that's okay.  That attorney is prepared and it pays to be methodical.

4.  Ask your questions slowly, directly and loud enough for everyone to hear you, especially the court reporter and the witness.  An attorney who spits out questions just encourages the witness to speak fast and butt in.  Keep it smooth.

5.  If you MUST read from a document, please read slowly.  Imagine being in a race where you are moving along at a comfortable pace, keeping up with everyone around you, then all of a sudden those around you are speeding up and leaving you behind.  It's hard to get to the finish line when you're left at the gate. 

Plus, the witness can't keep up with you if you're reading from a document at a fast rate.  

Most likely, the witness will say:  What, I don't understand, say that again, or I don't know what you mean.  Then opposing counsel wakes up and objects.  Time wasted.

6.  I, for one, love it when an attorney marks their own exhibits.  Some attorney says, Mark this as Exhibit so-and-so, and hands it to the reporter.  The reporter stops to mark it, and said attorney just keeps right on asking another question.  Hello?  I have only two hands.   Marking your own exhibits gives you and the witness a second of downtime to think about the exhibit about to be shown.

A-n-t-i-c-i-p-a-t-i-o-n.  I bet you will notice that the court reporter will smile and appreciate the lull.

7.  If you're going to be at the deposition for a while, take a break at least every hour to hour and a half.   That will give you time to think about other questions you may want to ask.  You can always ask the reporter to read back something to you during a break if you need clarification.  And, the reporter is probably in need of a stretch break, too.

That's all of my tips for today.  Transcripts await editing!