Depositions, arbitrations, hearings, and trials
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Ellsworth and Kane Deposition Services

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Resources

Practical material for the people who actually book depositions: paralegals, legal assistants, and associates working against a calendar.

Before the date

What we need to staff a proceeding

Send these and the setting is confirmed the same business day. Send some of them and we will chase you for the rest, which slows both of us down.

Always required

  • Case caption, case number, and jurisdiction
  • Witness name, and title if a corporate designee
  • Date, start time, and expected duration
  • Location, or a request that we arrange space, or remote
  • Noticing party and the ordering attorney
  • Billing contact and any client matter reference

Send if applicable

  • Interpreter language and mode required
  • Videography, and whether the video will be synchronised
  • Realtime feed for one or more attorneys
  • Standing expedite instruction for this matter
  • Exhibits for pre marking, with the numbering scheme
  • Protective order or confidentiality protocol
  • Accessibility requirements for any participant

Guidance

Preparing a witness for a remote deposition

Most remote deposition problems are witness environment problems, and every one of them is preventable the day before. You are welcome to send this list to your witness directly.

  1. Test the connection

    Join the technical check we offer. It takes five minutes and it catches the camera, microphone, and browser problems that otherwise surface once everyone is on the record.

  2. Use a wired connection where possible

    Wired internet is more stable than wireless, and wireless is far more stable than a mobile connection. Ask other people in the household to stay off video calls during the session.

  3. Choose a quiet, private room

    A closed door, no other people present, and no background audio. Testimony is given under oath, and the room should reflect that.

  4. Sit still and speak up

    Position the camera at eye level, sit close enough for clear audio, and avoid headphones with an unreliable microphone. Verbal answers only, since a nod does not appear in the record.

  5. Wait for the question to finish

    Slight audio delay makes interruption more likely than it is in person. Let counsel finish, pause, then answer. It makes for a cleaner record and a faster deposition.

  6. Have nothing else open

    Close other applications and put the phone away. Exhibits will be delivered through the platform when counsel introduces them, so nothing needs to be printed in advance.

Turnaround

Transcript delivery options

Standard delivery suits most matters. The tiers below exist for the ones where it does not. All expedite rates are quoted before the proceeding.

Realtime feed
Unedited text during the proceeding itself, streamed to counsel. Not a certified transcript and not citable as the record.
Rough draft
Uncertified working copy, typically at the close of the day or the next morning. Useful for same week motion work and for preparing the next witness.
Daily copy
Certified transcript delivered by the morning after the proceeding. Standard for trial and for compressed discovery schedules.
Expedited
Certified transcript on a two or three business day schedule.
Standard
Certified transcript on the ordinary production schedule, confirmed in writing at the time of the setting.
Copy orders
Available to any party at any time, including parties who did not attend, on the same terms as the ordering party.

Questions

Common questions

How much notice do you need to staff a deposition?
Settings sent during business hours are confirmed the same business day, and most dates can be staffed comfortably with several days of notice. For a proceeding inside forty eight hours, please call rather than email so we can begin staffing immediately. We would rather tell you quickly that a date is difficult than accept it and struggle.
Will I know who my reporter is before the day?
Yes. We name the reporter in the written confirmation. If a conflict later forces a change, we notify you and propose a replacement in the same message rather than letting you discover it at the proceeding.
Is Ellsworth & Kane a certified firm?
No, and no company can be. In California, certification attaches to the individual reporter, not to a business. Every proceeding we staff is reported by an individual holding a current California Certified Shorthand Reporter certificate, or the equivalent licence in the jurisdiction where testimony is taken. We are careful about this distinction because the law is careful about it.
Can the other side order a copy of the transcript?
Yes. Any party may order a copy at any time, on the same terms as the ordering party. California law prohibits providing a transcript to one party in advance of the others, and prohibits offering an ancillary service to only one party. We apply that rule without exception.
What does a deposition actually cost?
The main components are the reporter appearance fee, the per page transcript rate, and any expedite tier. Video, interpreting, realtime, suite space, and exhibit handling are separate line items where you use them. We provide all of this in writing before the proceeding so the invoice contains nothing you have not already seen.
What happens if we cancel?
Our cancellation terms are stated in the confirmation for every setting, so the policy is in front of you before the date rather than after it. Cancellations well in advance are ordinarily without charge. Late cancellations may carry a fee because the reporter has already turned down other work for that date.
How is the transcript delivered?
By encrypted download link issued to named recipients, in PDF, condensed, and plain text, along with a full word index and the exhibit package. We also supply the interchange formats used by common transcript management software. We do not send transcripts as open email attachments.
Do you handle proceedings outside California?
Yes. We arrange a reporter licensed or authorised in the relevant jurisdiction, apply our own format and delivery standards, and bill it through the same account as the rest of your matter. We will tell you openly when coverage is being provided through an affiliate.
Can you hold the same reporter across a long matter?
Wherever scheduling allows, yes, and we recommend it. Continuity keeps spellings, party names, and technical terminology consistent across volumes, which reduces errata and makes the transcripts easier to work with as a set.

Question not answered here?

A coordinator will answer it directly. We do not route questions about live matters through a general inbox.

Contact us Call (213) 444-0811