Master Deposition Objections with Our Handy Cheat Sheet

Effectively objecting in court and in depositions is a potent litigation strategy. It empowers you to protect your client’s rights, manage the deposition’s scope, and to build a stronger case for trial—but it can also be challenging.

In a deposition, time is of the essence. There isn’t an opportunity to pause and look up what you can object to.

Whether you haven’t yet had extensive experience or struggle to remember the types of questions you can object to, brushing up on the types of deposition objections you can make can enhance your performance in depositions—which ultimately benefits your client.

That’s why we’ve created this deposition objections “cheat sheet.” While it’s essential that you apply your legal knowledge and adhere to your jurisdiction’s rules, our handy guide outlines some of the most common types of deposition objections below.

Deposition objections: A brief summary

Before we dive into the common types of objections you may use at a deposition, let’s first review the basics of their underlying functions.

Protect your client’s rights and interests

The primary goal of deposition objections is to protect your client’s rights and interests during the deposition process. By raising objections to any improper questions opposing counsel asks, you act as a gatekeeper for your client (and their evidence). In doing so, you can prevent your client from providing misleading, inaccurate, or improper testimony during a deposition.

Protecting your client’s rights during a deposition extends to requests for documents. For example, lawyers may need to object during a deposition if opposing counsel requests medical records from your client that they are not entitled to.

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Guide the deposition’s scope and direction

Proper objections also help you better control the scope and direction of the deposition. When you object to improper or irrelevant questions in a deposition, you are able to help protect your client from undue harassment or intimidation, while better ensuring a fair and efficient discovery process.

Preserve objections for future proceedings

It’s also important to note the importance of making proper deposition objections in order to preserve objections for future proceedings. Specifically, if you fail to raise appropriate objections during the deposition (for example, an objection over the form of a question), then you effectively waive that same objection during trial or other future proceedings. By making the right deposition objections, you can ensure that you can challenge the corresponding improper or objectionable evidence or testimony later if you need to.

Deposition objections cheat sheet: Common types of deposition objections

When it comes to a deposition, there are a number of potential objections that may arise. The majority of deposition objections are for form, relevance, or privilege, but there are several more. In the following section, we’ll provide a list of common deposition objections, along with hypothetical examples.

Disclaimer: These deposition objections are designed to provide a helpful starting point and to give you a broad understanding of the types of questions you can object to—the information is not exhaustive and not intended as legal advice. And, of course, not all objections will be accepted. It’s critical that you consult with and stay up-to-date on the legal principles relevant to your practice area, jurisdiction, and specific case to ensure you have a solid understanding of how these objections fit within applicable law.

Form of question

First off, counsel can object to the form of a question in a deposition. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the question itself is improper.

Rather, an objection to form refers to the way that it’s being asked. If a question is vague, unclear, confusing, or incorporates multiple questions in one, this may impact your client’s ability to provide accurate testimony.

Let’s take a closer look at how form can be an issue. If your client is asked multiple questions at once (a.k.a. a compound question), they may get confused or inadvertently answer inaccurately.

Example

• Opposing counsel: “After you and your partner split up, you moved to Seattle and started a new job as a construction worker and your children came to visit you every weekend, correct?”
• You: “Objection, form of question. Counsel has asked multiple questions in one question. Please ask one question at a time.”

In the example above, your client may provide a blanket “yes” or “no” answer, which may not accurately reflect their response to all three statements of what happened after the couple split up.

Note: Different jurisdictions may have different rules for form objections, so be sure to know what applies to you.

Relevance

The next key category of deposition objections is a lack of relevance. This objection ensures the deposition stays focused on what’s relevant to the case, while helping to prevent questions that are unnecessary, potentially harmful, or time wasters.

Questions asked at a deposition must be logically and legally relevant to the matters at issue in the action (or must reasonably be able to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence).

While the relevance objection can be somewhat subjective at a deposition (and generally there is a wider scope of discovery than may be found at a trial), opposing counsel is not entitled to information that strays too far from the issue in question.

Example

• Opposing counsel: “So, are you more of a dog or a cat person?”
• You: “Objection, counsel. That question is not relevant to the matters at issue in this case.”

Privilege

The third key type of deposition objection is privilege, which helps protect clients from having to answer questions that provide privileged information to opposing counsel. This information can include anything confidential or sensitive, or communications that are protected under specific relationships or constitutional rights.

Objections of privilege are typically the only instances when you can tell your client not to answer a question during a deposition.

Privilege objections can be made on a number of grounds of recognized legal privilege, including:

• Spousal privilege
• Attorney-client privilege
• Doctor-patient privilege
• Constitutional privilege (such as Fifth Amendment privilege)

Privilege objections are a good instance of how deposition objections can be key to future legal proceedings. In the example below, asserting attorney-client privilege at a deposition would preserve that objection for a future trial.

Example

• Opposing counsel: “Did you and your lawyer talk about the possibility of settlement during your last meeting?”
• You: “Objection, counsel. That question seeks privileged information.”

It’s also important to note that privilege does have certain limitations and exceptions, so be sure to know what applies to your case.

Asked and answered

Opposing counsel is not entitled to ask the same question over and over again—whether that means asking the exact same question repeatedly or rewording the question (i.e. as opposed to asking follow-up or clarifying questions)—in an attempt to get different evidence from your client.

If your client has already provided their answer, asking the same thing over and over again doesn’t serve a legitimate purpose, and it can ultimately lead to confusion and feelings of harassment or badgering.

Example

• Opposing counsel: “You had to take some time off work following the accident?”
• Plaintiff: “Yes, I took two weeks off.”
• Opposing counsel: “So you took two weeks off following the accident?”
• Plaintiff: “Yes, that’s correct”
• Opposing counsel: “Did you take less than two weeks off following the accident?”
• You: “Objection, counsel. Asked and answered.”

Harassment

In a similar vein, if opposing counsel appears to be harassing, attacking, or questioning a witness inappropriately (such as by asking unduly invasive, irrelevant questions), counsel can object on the basis of harassment. Doing so can help protect your client from potential distress, embarrassment, or intimidation, while also helping to preserve a fair and respectful deposition.

Example

• Opposing counsel: “Your former partner has primary custody of your children, correct?”
• Client: “Yes”
• Opposing counsel: “You didn’t fight for custody? What, so you don’t care about your children?”
• You: “Objection, counsel. The question is harassing and not relevant to this case.”

Calls for a legal conclusion

In a deposition, the deponent is there to provide facts based on their knowledge and personal experience—questions that call for a legal conclusion are not appropriate at a deposition. Typically, the deponent is not a lawyer and cannot make legal conclusions.

But, even if the deponent is a lawyer, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they can be asked to provide legal opinions during a deposition (unless the witness is providing specific expert testimony).

Example

• Opposing counsel: “Do you believe the defendant owed you a duty of care?”
• You: “Objection, counsel. You’re calling for a legal conclusion.”

Calls for speculation

As previously mentioned, witnesses in a deposition should be asked for facts that they know and their own personal knowledge and experiences—not to speculate on hypotheticals, what they would have done, or what they think may have happened.

So, if opposing counsel asks a question that the witness can only answer based on a guess, assumption, or opinion, you may have cause to object.

Example

• Opposing counsel: “What evidence do you think Mr. O’Neil had regarding the defendant’s intent at the time of the robbery?”
• You: “Objection, counsel. The question calls for the witness to speculate on the evidence Mr. O’Neil had. This is beyond the scope of the witness’s knowledge.”

Mischaracterization of testimony

There may be times during a deposition that opposing counsel misrepresents or misstates a witness’s earlier testimony—which can, in effect, attribute a different meaning to what the witness actually said. In such instances, an objection can be raised in order to provide clarity or correct any inaccuracies.

Example

• Opposing counsel: “You stated earlier that you attended the meeting on May 1st, isn’t that right?
• You: “Objection, mischaracterization. My client never stated that they were present at the meeting. He testified that he was not in attendance at the meeting on May 1st.”

Deposition objections cheat sheet: Our final thoughts

The testimony in a deposition can make a major impact on the outcome of a legal matter, and the key to a successful deposition is preparation.

Having a thorough understanding of the most common types of deposition objections—and also having a handy cheat sheet—can alleviate pressure during a deposition and help ensure the process goes smoothly, regardless of your experience.

Of course, while this cheat sheet is a valuable resource, it’s just a starting point. It’s also imperative that you familiarize yourself with your jurisdiction’s rules and regulations relating to depositions and objections. This will help you navigate the deposition process with greater ease, and in accordance with the guidelines that apply to you.

It’s also key to note that deposition preparation starts long before the actual deposition. To this end, Clio’s integration partners provide several options for streamlining the discovery and deposition preparation process.

A few pertinent examples? Logikcull can help to streamline and automate the eDiscovery process, while AgileLaw and FactBox help with managing exhibits and staying organized.

 

Learn more about our integration partners here.

What objections are appropriate for depositions?

While they vary depending on jurisdiction and specific case, lawyers generally can make objections on the grounds of form, relevance, or privilege in depositions. Deposition objections may also be made on the basis of harassment, calls for a legal conclusion, calls for speculation, asked and answered, and mischaracterization of testimony.

We published this blog post in July 2023. Last updated: January 2, 2024.

Categorized in: Uncategorized