Deposition - Procedure.

(a) Oath and record of testimony.- The deponent shall be put on oath by the officer before whom a deposition is taken, and the testimony of the deponent shall be recorded by the officer or by someone acting under the direction and in the presence of the officer. The testimony shall be recorded stenographically or, pursuant to Rule 2-416, by videotape or audiotape. The testimony shall also be transcribed unless the parties agree otherwise or unless the court orders otherwise to avoid expense, hardship, or injustice. The court may order one or more of the parties to pay the cost of transcription.

(b) Examination and cross-examination.- When a deposition is taken upon oral examination, examination and cross-examination of the deponent may proceed as permitted in the trial of an action in open court. The cross-examination need not be limited to the subject matter of the examination in chief, but its use shall be subject to the provisions of Rule 2-419. Instead of participating in the oral examination, a party served with a notice of deposition may transmit written questions to the officer before whom the deposition is taken, who shall propound them to the deponent.

(c) Materials produced.- Any party may inspect and copy documents and other tangible things produced by a deponent and may require them to be marked for identification and attached to and returned with the transcript. However, if the person producing the materials requests their return, (1) the person producing the materials, upon affording each party an opportunity to verify the copies by comparison with the originals, may substitute copies to be marked for identification and attached to and returned with the transcript, or (2) the person producing the materials may offer the originals to be marked for identification, after affording each party an opportunity to inspect and copy them, in which event the materials may be used in the same manner as if attached to and returned with the transcript. Any party may move for an order that the originals be attached to and returned with the transcript to the court, pending final disposition of the case.

(d) Signature and Changes.- Unless changes and signing are waived by the deponent and the parties, the officer shall submit the transcript to the deponent, accompanied by a notice in substantially the following form:

[Caption of case]

NOTICE TO [name of deponent]

The enclosed transcript of your deposition in the above-captioned case is submitted to you on [date of submission of the transcript to the deponent] for your signature and any corrections or other changes you wish to make. All corrections and other changes will become part of your sworn testimony.

After you have read the transcript, sign it and, if you are making changes, attach to the transcript a separate correction sheet stating the changes and the reason why each change is being made. Return the signed transcript and any correction sheet to [name and address of officer before whom the deposition was taken] no later than 30 days after the date stated above.

If you fail to return the signed transcript and any correction sheet within the time allowed, the transcript may be used as if signed by you. See Rules 2-415 and 2-501 of the Maryland Rules of Procedure.

Within 30 days after the date the officer mails or otherwise submits the transcript to the deponent, the deponent shall (1) sign the transcript and (2) note any changes to the form or substance of the testimony in the transcript on a separate correction sheet, stating the reason why each change is being made. The officer promptly shall serve a copy of the correction sheet on the parties and attach the correction sheet to the transcript. The changes contained on the correction sheet become part of the transcript. If the deponent does not timely sign the transcript, the officer shall sign the transcript, certifying the date that the transcript was submitted to the deponent with the notice required by this section and that the transcript was not signed and returned within the time allowed. The transcript may then be used as if signed by the deponent, unless the court finds, on a motion to suppress under section (j) of this Rule, that the reason for the failure to sign requires rejection of all or part of the transcript.

Cross References.

See Rule 2-501 (e) for the consequences of filing an affidavit or other written statement under oath that contradicts deposition testimony that was not changed within the time allowed by this section.


(e) Certification and notice.- The officer shall attach to the transcript a certificate that the deponent was duly sworn and that the transcript is a true record of the testimony given. A transcript prepared from a certified videotape or audiotape may be certified by any person qualified to act as a deposition officer. The officer shall then securely seal the transcript in an envelope endorsed with the title of the action and marked "Deposition of (here insert name of deponent)."

(f) Copy to be furnished.- Upon receiving payment of reasonable charges, the officer shall furnish a copy of the transcript to any party or to the deponent.

(g) Objections.- All objections made during a deposition shall be recorded with the testimony. An objection to the manner of taking a deposition, to the form of questions or answers, to the oath or affirmation, to the conduct of the parties, or to any other kind of error or irregularity that might be obviated or removed if objected to at the time of its occurrence is waived unless a timely objection is made during the deposition. An objection to the competency of a witness or to the competency, relevancy, or materiality of testimony is not waived by failure to make it before or during a deposition unless the ground of the objection is one that might have been obviated or removed if presented at that time. The grounds of an objection need not be stated unless requested by a party. If the ground of an objection is stated, it shall be stated specifically, concisely, and in a non-argumentative and non-suggestive manner. If a party desires to make an objection for the record during the taking of a deposition that reasonably could have the effect of coaching or suggesting to the deponent how to answer, then the deponent, at the request of any party, shall be excused from the deposition during the making of the objection.

Committee Note.

During the taking of a deposition, it is presumptively improper for an attorney to make objections that are not consistent with Rule 2-415 (g). Objections should be stated as simply, concisely, and non-argumentatively as possible to avoid coaching or making suggestions to the deponent and to minimize interruptions in the questioning of the deponent. Examples include "objection, leading;" "objection, asked and answered;" and "objection, compound question."

(h) Refusals to answer.- When a deponent refuses to answer a question, the proponent of the question shall complete the examination to the extent practicable before filing a motion for an order compelling discovery.

(i) Further Deposition Upon Substantive Changes to Transcript.- If a correction sheet contains substantive changes, any party may serve notice of a further deposition of the deponent limited to the subject matter of the substantive changes made by the deponent unless the court, on motion of a party pursuant to Rule 2-403, enters a protective order precluding the further deposition.

(j) Motions to suppress.- An objection to the manner in which testimony is transcribed, videotaped, or audiotaped, or to the manner in which a transcript is prepared, signed, certified, sealed, endorsed, transmitted, filed, or otherwise dealt with by the officer is waived unless a motion to suppress all or part of the deposition is made promptly after the defect is or with due diligence might have been ascertained. In ruling on a motion to suppress, the court may grant leave to any party to depose the deponent further on terms and conditions the court deems appropriate.

[Amended Mar. 22, 1991, effective July 1, 1991; Dec. 16, 1999, effective Jan. 1, 2000; Dec. 8, 2003, effective July 1, 2004.]

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