{"id":903188,"date":"2024-08-22T13:24:51","date_gmt":"2024-08-22T19:24:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=903188"},"modified":"2024-08-22T13:24:57","modified_gmt":"2024-08-22T19:24:57","slug":"remote-depostion-preparation-is-key","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/remote-depostion-preparation-is-key\/","title":{"rendered":"Preparation Is Key to Stopping Witness Coaching During Remote Depositions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Esquire Deposition Solutions<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the second time this year, the American Bar Association is offering guidance on how litigators can successfully, and ethically, minimize the occurrence of witness coaching during remote depositions. The ABA\u2019s advice in a nutshell: Litigators should take time to understand the risks of witness coaching and then proactively address those risks through cross-examination,\u00a0remote deposition<\/a> protocols, and efforts to raise professionalism expectations through published codes of conduct.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ABA observed in\u00a0ABA Formal Opinion 508 (The Ethics of Witness Coaching)<\/a>\u00a0that, while the technology used in remote depositions and other remote proceedings is new, the lawyer\u2019s ethical obligations of competence, honesty, and respect for the integrity of the fact finding process are not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Model Rules that constrain unethical witness coaching extend to all testimonial contexts, regardless of format,\u201d the ABA advised. \u201cIt is prudent for lawyers and adjudicators to consider prophylactic measures designed for use in remote proceedings to prevent and detect incidences of unethical coaching conduct.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Integrity Has Always Been the Rule<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The ABA ethics opinion reminds litigators that a failure to prepare witnesses for depositions, regardless of format, has always implicated ethical duties of competence and diligence. Conduct that interferes with the integrity of the justice system and obstructs another party\u2019s access to evidence has also long been considered ethically problematic, the ABA noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cIt is prudent for lawyers and adjudicators to consider prophylactic measures designed for use in remote proceedings to prevent and detect incidences of unethical coaching conduct.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

When these concerns arise in the relatively recent professional context of remote depositions, the recommended solutions for litigators are, first, to \u201cbe aware of the coaching-related risks of remote technology\u201d and, second, to \u201cstructure remote proceedings in ways that will deter its occurrence and enhance the ability to detect it,\u201d according to the ABA opinion drafters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ABA suggested several steps that litigators, courts, and state bar organizations can take to minimize the occurrence of unethical \u2013 or, at least, unprofessional \u2013 witness coaching during remote depositions. Among them:<\/p>\n\n\n\n