Legal Question in Civil Litigation in North Carolina

Re: Deposition Costs

I assume you are asking about a Superior or District Court civil case. The plaintiff pays the cost of the original transcript of the depositions it requests. The original cost usually includes one copy and may also include a digital version, or a summary, or even an index. The cost itself is set by the court reporter who atttends and transcribes the deposition. The reporter is usually chosen by the party who requests the deposition. Every court reporter I have ever worked with wants payment in no more than 30 days. The reporter may insist on some amount of payment before the transcript is delivered, if they are not familiar with the attorney involved. This usually occurs when the attorney is from out of town.

If the party who did not request the deposition wants a copy of the transcript, they usually have to pay for the cost of a copy. Some reporters offer a digital version at a free or reduced cost.

In NC Industrial Commission cases, the defendant may be required to pay for many expenses incurred at the request of plaintiff's counsel. Expert witness fees are also another subject entirely.