If you are going through a divorce with contested terms, your spouse’s divorce attorney may request that you be deposed during the divorce process. While being deposed may seem stressful, it need not be. Understanding what depositions are all about, what to expect, and how to prepare for yours can help you calm your jitters and tackle your deposition head-on.
If you are facing a divorce, protecting your parental and financial rights is essential, and an experienced Killeen divorce attorney is standing by to help.
Divorce Depositions
Divorce depositions are typically intended to gather information during the discovery process. Divorce discovery is the phase when both sides, meaning you and your divorcing spouse, request information from one another that is relevant to your case.
Your deposition will likely be held in a formal office setting. You, your attorney, your spouse, his or her attorney, and a court reporter will all be in attendance. The court reporter will ask you, as the deposition witness, to raise your right hand and swear to tell the truth, and your spouse’s attorney will commence by asking you a series of questions.
Your own attorney will be by your side. He or she may object to some of the questioning and may advise you not to answer certain questions.
In addition, you and your spouse are not the only witnesses who can be deposed for a divorce. Anyone who is deemed to have information that is relevant to the case may be deposed, including the following people:
Friends of either spouse or of the couple
Family members from either side
Business associates of either spouse
Those with information about the children and their well-being, such as teachers, daycare providers, family members, counselors, and more
If you receive a request for deposition, it is not the same as an invitation – it is your legal obligation to appear.
The Deposition’s Purpose
Divorce depositions generally play two primary roles. The first is to gather testimony that is advantageous to one side of the case. There is a second purpose, however, and this is to elicit admissions under oath that can potentially be used to undermine the other side of the case. For this reason, it is important to be prepared and to take the matter very seriously.
Gathering Information
Parties to divorce often turn to depositions for gathering information when they do not have access to financial information or were not privy to certain decisions made throughout the marriage.
For example, if either side believes the other is withholding financial information, hiding assets, or failing to share accurate information about business interests, they might move forward with a deposition.
Depositions can also be implemented for issues related to child custody.
Locking the Witness into His or Her Statements
The other side of depositions is a legal strategy that is all about leading the witness toward making statements that prove unfavorable for him or her. The statements made in your deposition are under oath, which means that you are locked into what you say.
If your testimony is not in perfect alignment (or if it highlights discrepancies) with other evidence you have provided, it may cause problems at trial.
The attorney deposing you would like to catch you in a lie or untruth, but you should not let this rattle you. The fact is that some divorce attorneys use depositions to intimidate the other side. The idea is that, if you are being deposed, you must be lying, but this is far from the truth of the matter.
Your Killeen divorce attorney is there to help you protect your legal rights – not to scam anyone out of anything – and you are well advised to continue protecting these rights, which include not letting the other side bully you into doing or saying something that harms your case.
Your Stance
In the end, depositions are not a divorce requirement, and they often amount to nothing more than a costly addition to the process. In fact, when both parties are on the up and up, depositions generally are not necessary.
Depositions also have a way of turning up the heat on a divorce case. By taking the high road, keeping your cool, remaining on the right side of the law, and focusing on protecting your financial and parental rights throughout the divorce process, you will be well prepared to handle whatever the other side throws your way.
The Questions You Are Asked
Your dedicated Killeen divorce attorney will have a good idea about the kinds of questions you are likely to be asked at your divorce deposition, and he or she will help make sure that you are well prepared to answer them.
Deposition questions are generally short, open-ended questions because the goal is to get you talking (in the hope that you will share more than you intend to share). Such questions can be answered succinctly with just a few words or can elicit long, detailed explanations.
The attorney asking the questions is going for long, rambling responses, but your goal is short, succinct, and truthful responses that answer the question without expanding on it.
Consider the following kinds of questions that are commonly employed in divorce depositions focused on financial matters, child custody, or both:
What do you do for a living?
What are your work hours?
How much do you earn annually?
Do you own or have any financial interest in any businesses? If so, please explain.
How is your overall physical and mental health?
How would you describe your overall estate, including your home? What kind of improvements have you made to your home?
What is your current living situation like?
How involved are you with raising your children?
What are your children’s interests?
What is your relationship with your children?
How do you discipline your children?
What hobbies and recreational activities do you participate in?
While none of these questions is particularly dynamic or thought provoking, any one of them can prompt expansive responses that contain a considerable amount of information. In the midst of a divorce, many of these questions could also inspire a defensiveness that colors your responses, and the attorney asking the questions is counting on this.
In other words, there is often much more to deposition questions than meets the eye.
Prepare for Your Deposition
If you find the idea of being deposed nerve wracking, you are not alone. Depositions have a way of making the witness (the person being deposed) feel like he or she is in the hot seat, and with this comes the feeling that there must be a reason for that. Being deposed, however, does not make you guilty of anything, and it does not mean that you are dishonest.
The better prepared you are for your deposition, the better off you will be, and there are several tips that can help you get there.
Prepare ahead of Time
A deposition is no time to wing it. Your spouse’s divorce attorney is deposing you for a reason, and even if that reason is to intimidate you, being well prepared is the best response.
Your seasoned Killeen divorce attorney will ensure that you know what to expect and can comfortably handle what comes your way. You can expect your attorney to hit you with sample questions and to help you formulate a response style that helps you stay on track.
Be Truthful
When you are deposed, you are under oath, which makes being scrupulously honest paramount. Being caught in a lie in a deposition – or providing a response that does not jibe with the evidence you have already given (or will give) – is a terrible look that can damage your case. In the end, any lies or untruths will almost certainly come back to haunt you.
Do Not Offer up Information
You are required to answer each of the questions put to you during the deposition truthfully (unless your attorney objects and advises you not to do so), but this does not mean you need to volunteer information.
Answer each of the questions asked of you as briefly as possible (without elaboration), and if your spouse’s divorce attorney needs more information on the matter, he or she can ask for it. Your job is to answer only the question that is put before you.
Take the Time that You Need
When you are deposed, you are on the spot, which may make you feel as if you need to provide rapid-fire responses, but there is absolutely no need to do so. You are under oath and are required to answer each question honestly. If you need to pause and collect your thoughts, you are well within your rights and are well advised to do so.
Listen carefully to the question posed to you, take a breath, think about your response, and then proceed with your answer. Do not let your spouse’s attorney pressure you to respond before you are prepared.
If You Need It, Ask for Clarification
If the question you have been asked is confusing or ambiguous, do not proceed by attacking it from every angle. Instead, ask for the clarification you need. It is difficult to answer a question truthfully when you do not understand it.
By the same token, if you do not know the answer to a question, it is perfectly acceptable to say that you do not know or that you do not remember. If you are not sure what the answer is, you should not feel pressured to guess.
Do Not Be Bamboozled into Changing Your Response
If the attorney deposing you keeps asking you different versions of the same question, you should not feel pressured to come up with a unique answer to each one. (This is a common tactic used by opposing legal teams.) Your first answer remains the correct answer, and you can repeat it as many times as you need to.
The attorney is attempting to trip you up, but concentrating on the core question and your answer to it (which will not vary) can help you stay the course – without getting bogged down by the attorney’s antics.
Master the Pregnant Pauses
If you have answered the question asked of you, your work is done. If you notice that the attorney asking the question is staring at you in anticipation of more, do not fall victim to this trap. You have already answered the question, and you should be prepared to ride these pauses comfortably until the next question is asked. Filling the awkward silences is not your job.
Carefully Review the Documents Presented to You
It is not unusual to be presented with financial and other kinds of documents during divorce depositions. If you recognize a document right off the bat, it is fine to answer any related questions (if you are familiar enough with the document to do so).
If you do not recognize the document or are not familiar enough with it to comment, however, you will need to review it carefully before responding. And, again, if you are not sure about the answer, you should tell the attorney deposing you that you do not know.
An Experienced Killeen Divorce Attorney Can Help
Brett Pritchard at The Law Office of Brett H. Pritchard in Killeen, Texas, is a formidable divorce attorney whose impressive practice focuses on skillfully advocating for his clients’ favorable case resolutions. He is here for you, too. Your case is important, so please do not wait to contact us online or call us at (254) 781-4222 for more information about how we can help you today.