Page 30 - FDCC Deposition Drills

A FEW QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS
Who wrote the letter? Why? What does it say? What doesn’t it say?
Is the letter purely a CYA letter? Why? What aspects of it signify this?
Are there other drafts of the letter? How are they different?
How do you get a witness to focus on the words, phrases or sentences of a letter you want to focus on?
How do you separate out the helpful parts of a letter from the unhelpful parts? How do you use a letter to support your theme?
How do you use a letter to tell your story?
Deposition Drills How to Teach Deposition Skills
Using Correspondence
E-mails have largely replaced formal correspondence, but letters between and among parties and witnesses remain, and their use in depositions remain important. As with e-mails, one must learn how to refer to the letter for the record and use it to question a witness, who may have been the sender, recipient or subject of the letter.
EXPLANATION
Participants will learn how to use correspondence in depositions.
EXERCISE
Gather letters used as exhibits in your depositions. If you have none, ask around and secure letters used as exhibits by others at your firm in their depositions. Explain the context of the letters to the participants and then have them question you about it. Participants need to properly identify and mark the letter for the record and discuss its contents with you. To the extent possible, the participant should try to secure relevant information and admissions through using the letter.
LESSONS LEARNED
This exercise teaches you how to analyze a letter and make the most of it when deposing a witness about it. There is what the letter says, what it doesn’t, who wrote it, who read it, who it’s about and its import and impact.
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SECTION 03 USING EXHIBITS