In the legal world, depositions have always existed. In legal cases, it doesn’t matter how guilty or innocent a person or company may seem.
The only thing that matters is sworn testimony, not a “he-said, she-said” scenario. That’s why deposition summary services have grown in popularity with clients, attorneys, paralegals, and even judges
A deposition transcript is a sworn testimony from key members of a litigation case. While everyone involved in a court case wants the honest facts to be presented, a big challenge can be sifting through hundreds or thousands of page-line deposition summaries.
That’s where deposition summaries come into play.
Federal law limits a deposition to seven hours. While the average deposition testimony doesn’t last that long, the challenge lies in the fact that the testimony from that deposition needs to be accessible for a litigation attorney and law firm to use during a case.
A deposition testimony service company takes the deposition recording and condenses it into accurate deposition summaries with page notations of important points for the case. Now that we know what deposition summaries are, what benefits do they provide for attorneys, law firms and clients?
Time is of the essence in a legal case
Time is money in the legal world, and the more time attorneys or their support staff spend the more billable hours for clients. Utilizing deposition summaries can save hours of transcription time as well as reduce costs for clients.
A deposition transcript provides a concise summary of pertinent points in a case, which saves time and also provides attorneys more time to build their overall strategy.
A concise overview also gets deposition summaries to defense teams, insurance companies, and others who may request them.
A deposition summary service increases the chances of success
No matter what task a person is facing, being in a hurry opens the door for mistakes. This is no different with litigation teams. When you hurry, things can get missed.
Missing even one piece of testimony can affect the outcome of a legal case.
A deposition transcript summary captures every aspect of a witness’s interview so that legal teams can better prepare for a client’s case.
That means more time on pre-trial preparation and less of a chance that something gets left out.
A deposition summary service spreads the savings around
Billable hours. Those words might strike fear into the hearts of a client who has enlisted the services of a law firm.
The more time a litigation case takes, the more the costs rise for clients.
The rates of billable hours differ by state, as well as by the size of a firm.
Keeping billable hours more manageable
Billable hours can be as high as $400 per hour in New York, or as low as $189 per hour in South Dakota. But in every state, those rates can double for partner work.
That’s why utilizing a deposition transcript service company can save money – for legal professionals as well as clients – and can provide a cost effective solution.
Summary professionals can produce deposition summaries much quicker than legal professionals, thus reducing billable hours and passing savings on to clients.
Summaries help litigation teams prepare for the unknown
Even when a litigation team is prepared for a court case, there is another side that will try to weaken their case.
There can only be one winner, and it is usually the team that is the best prepared.
Deposition summary services with page line summaries can help litigation attorneys prepare for the unexpected – how the other team will try to attack their client’s stance.
With all of the vital points and critical information from key witnesses in a case in front of them, attorneys can better anticipate their opposition’s strategy.
Time to settle, or not?
No litigation team goes into a court case planning to lose, but there are some cases that are stronger than others.
Utilizing accurate deposition summaries can help outline the strengths and weaknesses of a case.
This can be vital in helping litigation teams in settlement negotiations. If a deposition has glaring weaknesses, it can help create more realistic negotiation plans.
The more technical the case, the more deposition summaries help
Clear communication is the key to any litigation case. The better a judge or jury understands the details of a case, the better the chances are of a positive decision for a litigation team.
Especially in the case of a technical topic or criminal lawsuits that are more difficult to understand, professionally prepared deposition summaries help to present clearer evidence.
Keeping up with the legal Joneses
Not every law firm utilizes professional deposition summaries. However, those who do can stay at the forefront of technology by doing so.
Professional deposition transcripts use technology tools like Natural Language Processing (NLP), artificial intelligence and machine learning to provide timely, accurate depositions.
Treading softly with technology
Clients who want these time—and money-saving tools will look for forward-thinking firms. However, utilizing tools like AI-generated deposition summaries is a sensitive topic.
AI offers many benefits in many industries, but it must be implemented in a human-centric manner. Ethical AI is the practice of ensuring that it respects human rights now and in the future.
Big brother is watching, but not too closely
How often have you been searching for something on your iPad or laptop, only to see an ad for your search target pop up on your phone or other device shortly thereafter?
Big Brother really does seem to be watching and listening.
AI isn’t bigger than human values
That might be fine if you’re searching for a cool tavern or restaurant, but with a legal case, it just won’t fly.
That’s why Ethical AI in the legal industry is so important.
In a legal case, a person’s privacy, values, race, religion, sexual orientation, and more must be protected from being compromised through the use of Artificial Intelligence.
Knowing your intended audience
Like with any piece of communication, it can seem effective until it isn’t compiled for the right audience.
The pertinent points of deposition summaries can be tailored to be easy to understand by its intended litigation audience.
This way, the summary services’ key points provide the context of a case without having to pore through an entire transcript.
Qualities of a good Deposition Summary
A professional deposition summary team doesn’t simply recount the significant testimony of key witnesses and lengthy deposition transcripts.
Before doing a detailed summary, research on the case and its details must be performed. This includes corroborating testimony of key witnesses like medical experts and other professionals on key testimony of the case.
Quality deposition summary services also include noting any discrepancies in times, dates, names, and other key facts in a case. If a law firm simply needs to summarize depositions, a paralegal or more junior associate could be utilized.
That’s why a professional deposition summary services company can help set the tone for a more successful litigation case. They can handle the key points of an entire deposition so that a firm’s legal team can focus on the litigation process.
Are there two sides to every story?
There is an old age that says “There are two sides to every story,” but that might not be true anymore.
With most anything, there are positives on one side and challenges on the other. However, with deposition summary service companies, there seems to only be one positive side of the story.
Deposition summaries are a plus for law firms and litigation personnel. They are also a plus to legal clients because they hep them save time and money.
Deposition summaries provide the following benefits:
- They save litigation teams time and save clients money with fewer billable legal hours
- They save attorneys time, money, and stress with less case preparation
- They provide accurate, succinct deposition summaries to help litigation teams present their best case for their clients
- They help provide useful information to judges for their case summary and eventual judgment
- They help provide clearer communication and understanding during more technical cases where the language might be more challenging to understand.
There are plenty of old adages that continue to stand the test of time. “Two heads are better than one” and “a penny saved is a penny earned” are tried and true, but “there are two sides to every story” might need to be revisited.