As a young associate, taking a deposition can be both an exciting and intimidating process. Aside from trial, this may be the only time you are face-to-face with your adversaries, questioning and investigating their story. The confrontational aspect of depositions creates the potential for uncomfortable situations. This can be further compounded when dealing with difficult deponents and attorneys.

If you are like me, you have encountered situations where youth can be misconstrued as incompetence. This stereotype can be reinforced during the course of a deposition if it becomes apparent that you have not thoroughly prepared. As a young attorney, preparation is key to maintaining control of a deposition and to earning the respect of your peers. This article provides some advice based on situations many of us have encountered.

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Deposition Preparation

At the outset of a deposition, it is easy to determine the extent of an attorney's preparation. As a young associate, thorough planning is key to taking control of a deposition from its beginning. The path of successful preparation begins in the weeks and days leading up to the deposition. An outline of your questions is often the best way to begin. Not only will this give you a solid framework on which to base your questions, but it will also force you to review all the relevant facts of the case. Your outline should not be a verbatim list of questions, as this can lead to missing opportunities to ask important follow-up questions. Instead, the outline should be a succinct reference guide to help you stay on point and navigate throughout the deponent's testimony.

Throughout your outline, it is important to keep your end goal in mind. This can be difficult for young associates, as we are often required to handle piecemeal assignments. The inability to see a case develop from the outset can make it easy to lose sight of the overall objective, which will likely vary based on the facts and circumstances of each case. The objective may be to set the deponent up for testimony that will bolster a future motion for summary judgment. It may be to simply gain a better understanding of a key witness' version of an incident. Regardless of the objective, it is important that you clearly identify what you are hoping to get out of the deposition and frame your preparation and questions around this goal.

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Handling Adversity

Most young associates have experienced the discomfort of an overly hostile deposition. One of my early experiences with a hostile deponent came during a deposition I was observing. During the deposition, the deponent became very unhappy with some personal, yet completely relevant, questions. The witness threw a notepad and began raising his voice while cursing at the questioning attorney. Despite the quite obvious tension in the room, the attorney did not reply in kind. Instead, he politely asked the man to lower his voice, and informed the witness that the question was reasonable and a refusal to answer would be grounds for requiring the witness to reappear for the deposition on a later date. After considering his options, the witness calmed down and agreed to answer the questions.