*Sex, Lies & Videotaped Deposition Proceedings

| by Heather Duncan, Esq.

The California Rules of Civil Procedure 2025 et seq. and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rules 30 and 31 provide guidance for recording depositions using audio and/or video.

Absent an agreement of all parties, the party who schedules the deposition is required to give notice of the intent to record the deposition by audio or video in the Notice of Deposition. Any other party may make an audio or video record of the deposition provided that all other parties are given written notice at least three calendar days before the date of the deposition. 

If it is intended that the video will be used at trial, the videographer must be a person authorized to administer an oath and may not be financially interested in the action or a relative or employee of any attorney or any party. Unless there is an intention to use the audio or video at trial under 2025.340, the only requirement for the operator of the recording equipment is that he or she “shall be competent to set up, operate and monitor the equipment.” (CCP 2025.340).

What this means is, if the deposition has been properly noticed, any attorney, or the attorney’s agent or employee, may pull out his or her iPhone, or other recording device and begin recording at any time during the deposition. The only requirement is that recorder is competent to use a recording device.

At the request of any other party to the action, including a party who did not attend the taking of the deposition testimony, the party who recorded the deposition shall:

Allow that other party to hear the audio and/or view the video recording. Furnish a copy of the audio or video to the requesting party on receipt of payment of a reasonable cost. (CCP 2025.510(f)). It’s time to become proficient in mobile video recording skills!

If you have any questions or would like to schedule a free one hour MCLE “Litigating in the Mobile Age,” please contact Heather Duncan, Esq. at heather.duncan@networkdepo.com.

*We regret that due to space constraints, this Tips and Techniques did not actually contain any information on sex or lies.



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