Today's quick blog post is a link to a video Judy recorded for Speechpool a few months ago. It's about what happens during deposition proceedings. While the video was recorded to practice interpreting, the content covers exactly what happens during a deposition, which is why many interpreters have found it helpful to prepare for this type of proceedings. We love this, as we are killing two birds with one stone here! We have had several requests to make the video available outside of Speechpool, so here it is.
There will be a second part to this video coming soon--stay tuned!
We hope you find this useful! It's been our experience that most court interpreter training focuses on proceedings that happen in actual court, which makes sense. However, in many stages, cases are also handled outside of court (arbitration, mediation, depositions, etc.), but relatively little information is available about these processes. We are hence trying to fill in the gaps here in terms of information so our colleagues can prepare for these kinds of assignments. Enjoy!
4 comments:
Hi Judy,
Thank you for yet another informative post. I've heard it said that there are two purposes for a Deposition:
1)For the other side to get information *from* you, to use *against* you.
2)For the other side to size you up and get an idea of what kind of Witness you'd make on the Stand if the case went to Trial.
I've found that the absence of a Judge can be problematic. In Court, everyone has to behave themselves. In a Deposition, there's no Judge to enforce decorum, *sometimes* to the detriment of the professionalism, civility, and sanity of the proceedings.
@Josh: Our pleasure! And yes, we agree with you 100%: part of the idea can also be to get to see what the other side has on your case. All this info makes it possible for both parties to determine if it's worth going forward with the case or if it's best to settle (which is what usually happens).
And yes, things can and do get out of control indeed. I'd say that 80% of the depos I do are very civil, but there are 10% that are uncomfortable and 10% where things get ugly and lawyer insults fly left and right, which of course I also interpret. It's tough to be in these situations, but at least the interpreter and the court reporter are always professional, even if the attorneys may not be. Thanks for reading and for commenting.
Judy, enjoyed your video and perspective on the famous "disposition." I've had my share of them over the years. Fortunately, I've never had a terrible experience. A few upset and after hearing, rightfully so. But for the most part, everyone was well behaved. I've seen more bad behavior from the judge. Sad that the court wouldn't listen to the families.
@Skrivanek Group: Thanks for commenting--happy to hear that your experiences have been largely positive in this type of proceedings. And I fully agree with you: some judges can be very disrespectful. I make sure to write down their names so I don't vote for them during the next election.
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