As any experienced litigator will tell you, a deposition can be just as complex as a court trial and perhaps even more vital to a successful outcome. See David A. Binder, et al., A Depositions Course: Tackling the Challenge of Teaching for Professional Skills Transfer, 13 CLINICAL L. REV. 871, 874 (2007). Does it follow that the legal world is well-versed in deposition basics?

Sadly, no: In a 2000-2001 survey of attorneys, 57 percent of respondents had no law school training in depositions whatsoever. Id. at 875. In other words, if your litigators panic upon hearing the word deposition, they are by no means alone.

Relief is on the way: The How to Take and Defend Depositions database (TDDEP) was released on Westlaw on August 15, 2007. TDDEP contains the full text of L.J. Chris Martiniak's How to Take and Defend Depositions, Third Edition, a practical handbook that explains when, why, and how to use particular strategies, tactics, organizational approaches, methods, and techniques in taking and defending depositions. Sections are brief and intuitively organized and contain plainly stated, practical advice (e.g., "It is human nature to fall into certain habits, such as saying 'OK' after each answer or beginning each question with 'So' or 'Um' or 'Now.' Make a conscious effort to avoid this—it drives people crazy and makes for a poor transcript.") The handbook also contains lots of sample transcripts, as well as useful forms, outlines, and checklists.

You can use the Table of Contents service to quickly browse the organization of the handbook and view headings and section names. ResultsPlus® is also available for this publication.