§ 9-11-32.Use of depositions in court proceedings; effect of errors and irregularities in depositions

A deposition can always be used to contradict or impeach the deponent as a witness, against anyone who was present, represented, or had reasonable notice of it. A party’s own deposition — or that of an officer, director, managing agent, or designated organizational representative testifying on the party’s behalf — can be used against that party for any purpose at all. A nonparty witness’s deposition opens up for any purpose too, once the court finds the witness dead, out of the county (unless the offering party procured that absence), unable to attend or testify because of age, illness, infirmity, or imprisonment, unreachable by subpoena despite the offering party’s efforts, unable to attend without manifest inconvenience because of the witness’s occupation, or a General Assembly member whose legislative session conflicts with the trial. Even when none of that applies, the trial judge has discretion to allow an oral deposition’s use anyway, and using it doesn’t bar the witness from also testifying live.

Once part of a deposition comes into evidence, an adverse party can require the rest of it, at least the relevant parts, to come in too, and any party can introduce other parts on its own. Substituting parties in a case doesn’t cut off the right to use depositions taken earlier, and depositions from a dismissed action carry over into a later action between the same parties on the same subject matter.

Objections follow their own timing rules. Defects in the deposition notice are waived unless promptly objected to in writing. Objections to the deposing officer’s disqualification are waived unless raised before, or as soon as possible after, the deposition begins. Competency, relevancy, and materiality objections generally survive until trial, unless the underlying problem could have been fixed on the spot. Errors in how the oral examination itself was conducted — the form of questions or answers, the oath, the parties’ conduct — are waived unless raised at the deposition. Objections to the form of written questions have to be served within the time allowed for the next round of questions, and within five days after the last authorized questions are served. And errors in how the deposition was transcribed, signed, certified, sealed, or filed are waived unless a motion to suppress follows with reasonable promptness after the defect turns up.