Legal Question in Personal Injury in Michigan

Re: Deposition Limit

Dear Mr. Prine,

Ordinarily, a witness will only be deposed one time.

Judges recognize that depositions can be very time-consuming and burdensome for the deponent (that is, the witness). Thus, if somebody objects to the scheduling of a second deposition, a court will typically demand that a good reason be given for the additional deposition. The court will also typically restrict which witnesses may be redeposed.

Examples of when a new deposition may be permitted include cases where a new party is added litigation that is already in progress after the deposition has been held; where the plaintiff amends a complaint to add a new count which relies upon facts and issues not implicated by the original complaint; or where significant new facts come to light which require the explanation or magnification of prior testimony. However, even under this type of scenario, if an objection is raised there is no guarantee that a judge will permit a second deposition..

A different situation may arise where a deposition is continued from a prior date. Sometimes an attorney or a witness must leave before the deposition is complete, and so the deposition is continued at a later date. This really amounts to a single deposition being held over more than one date, as opposed to a second deposition.

Ordinarily, if one party schedules a second deposition of a witness, the other side will either informally arrange the cancellation of the second deposition or otherwise complain to the court. There is a possibility that the parties (plaintiff(s) and defendant(s)) may decide to redepose a witness. In this situation, if the witness objects to being deposed an additional time, and the lawyer who scheduled the second deposition will not respond to the witness's objection, the witness would have to raise his or her own objection directly to the court. (That's fodder for a follow-up question, if the need arises.)

I hope you find this helpful,

- Aaron Larson

Re: Deposition Limit

Michigan Court Rules do not prevent a witness from being redeposed, but unless there is a good reason, such as a new party being added to the case that wasn't represented at the first deposition, or new areas of inquiry that came up in a later deposition that were not known at the time of the first deposition, the opposing lawyer will usually object to repeating a deposition. If you are unhappy about a second deposition, try calling one of the lawyers to complain, or at least work out arrangments at your convenience.