Personal Injury Law: Three Tips To Remember At A Deposition

If you are in the midst of a personal injury legal battle, both your legal party and the defense's legal party will be actively trying to collect evidence. The defense party has the right to request a deposition, which is basically the right to question you on the specifics of the accident before court. During the deposition, you will be asked a number of different questions by the other parties' lawyers, and your answers will and can be used against you in court at a later time. Your own attorney can be present at the deposition and can help you get through it. If you're feeling a bit nervous, heed these three tips.

Review Evidence Before the Deposition

There's a good chance that the deposition will affect the amount of settlement you may receive. You want to make sure that you are well acquainted with the facts surrounding your case, and that you do not open up any room or window for doubts to be introduced into your timeline. To prevent yourself from getting confused during the deposition, review as much evidence as possible with your attorney to make sure you are familiar with your case. This include taking a look at medical reports, police reports, and submitted witness testimonies.

If at any point in time, you are unsure of the answers during a deposition, don't make up an answer. If you make any mistakes or realize that you've made a mistake after answering a question, make sure you bring it up during the deposition as soon as possible.

Take Advantage of Pauses

When being questioned, don't jump the gun and answer all of the questions as they are fired at you. This may end up being a disadvantage to your position. The golden rule to remember is to pause after every question for several seconds. This will give you an opportunity to really think about the question that is being asked, think about how you are going to answer the question and also give your attorney an opportunity to veto or object to the question. If you jumped the gun and answered the question before your attorney has an opportunity to object to it, the answer will still be recorded in the transcript and can then be used against you.

Make sure you listen carefully to what's being asked of you and to spend some time thinking about how you're going to answer the question before you answer it.

Give Succinct Answers

It's easy for most people to go into depth when answering a question. In fact, most people make the mistake of giving too many details that may be harmful to their case. Any additional information you offer to the defending party's attorney can and will be used against you if possible – even if it has nothing to do with the question asked.

Keep your answers as short as possible. For example, if you can answer the question with either "yes" or "no", do so to avoid giving too much information and to ensure that you are staying on topic. Basically, the gist is to answer the question asked with as little words as possible.

Conclusion

A deposition can really make or break your case depending on the circumstances that surround your accident. If you are called to a deposition, make sure you practice answering possible questions that will be asked with your attorney via a mock deposition. This way, you'll be fully aware in regards to how you are expected to act, and the type of mannerism you should follow when answering any of the questions asked by the defense's attorney.

For more information, contact a company like Whiting, Hagg, Hagg, Dorsey & Hagg.