Full question:
My wife bought a car over ten years ago. She could not afford it and turned the car in without paying for it. She received a court order today to appear in court in July 22, 2009 for examination of the judgment against her. What can we do legally?
- Category: Discovery
- Subcategory: Depositions
- Date:
- State: Maryland
Answer:
An examination of a judgment debtor is similar to a deposition. The person is asked questions under oath to determine the location and extent of the assets that may be used to pay the judgment. The scope of permissible discovery includes any matter that is not privileged, and that is relevant to the subject matter involved. The question asked must itself be admissible in evidence or be reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence.
The scope of permissible discovery is very broad. "Reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence" means that you are allowed to probe into areas that may themselves not be admissible, if doing so would shed light on other evidence that is admissible. Therefore, the proper grounds for objecting to questions in a deposition is more limited than at trial.
Unless objections to the form of a question are raised in the deposition, they are waived. Such objections include assertions that the question is ambiguous, confusing, compound, calls for an undue narrative, calls for speculation, is argumentative or leading. An attorney may instruct the client not to answer the objectionable question, in which case the asking party will typically rephrase it.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.
