BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1875
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1875 (Gatto)
As Amended May 7, 2012
Majority vote
JUDICIARY 7-3
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|Ayes:|Feuer, Atkins, Dickinson, | | |
| |Huber, Monning, | | |
| |Wieckowski, Chesbro | | |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Wagner, Gorell, Jones | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Limits a civil deposition of any person to one day of
seven hours, except as specified. Specifically this bill :
1)Provides, unless ordered by the court, that a deposition in a
civil case shall be limited to one day of seven hours or no
more than seven hours over two days if a witness is ill or
over 65 years of age. Specifies that the court shall allow
additional time if needed to fairly examine the deponent or if
the deponent, another person, or any other circumstance
impedes or delays the examination.
2)Specifies that the limitation described above shall not apply
if the parties have stipulated that this section will not
apply to a specific deposition or the entire proceeding.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Permits a party to a civil action to take an oral deposition
of any person, including other parties to the action, upon
service of a proper notice indicating the date, time, and
location of the deposition, as well as notice of any materials
that must be produced at the deposition.
2)Permits any party or deponent, at any time before, during, or
after a deposition, to seek an order from the court protecting
the deponent from unwarranted annoyance, embarrassment, or
oppression, or undue burden or expense, and authorizes a
deposition officer to suspend the taking of testimony to
AB 1875
Page 2
enable the party or deponent to move for such protective
order. Specifies that the protective order may impose certain
conditions or limitations on the deposition, including an
order that the deposition be terminated or not taken at all.
3)Provides, under federal rules, that unless otherwise
stipulated or ordered by the court, a deposition is limited to
one day of seven hours. Specifies that a federal court may
allow additional time if needed to fairly examine the deponent
or if the deponent, another person, or any other circumstance
impedes or delays the examination.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS : Existing law allows a party to a civil action to take
an oral deposition of any person, including another party or the
other party's witness, as part of the pre-trial civil discovery
process. This testimony is reduced to writing for purposes of
preparing for trial or, under some circumstances, for use at
trial. California's Civil Discovery Act sets forth a number of
rules governing the means and times for notifying deponents and
the manner in which depositions must be conducted. In many ways
California law parallels the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on
these matters. For example, both federal rules and state law
permit a deponent or party to seek a protective order
terminating the deposition if it becomes overly oppressive or
burdensome. However, while the federal rules presumptively
limit depositions to one day of seven hours per deponent -
unless circumstances warrant additional time or the parties
stipulate otherwise - California law contains no such
limitation. According to the author and supporters of this
bill, the lack of any limitation in state law has led to
needlessly long and repetitive questioning of deponents, for
apparently no other purpose than to delay the proceeding or to
discourage a plaintiff from proceeding with a suit.
This bill, therefore, would adopt the language of Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure by limiting a civil deposition, as a general
rule, to one day of seven hours, albeit with one minor
exception. Because deponents who are ill or elderly may have
difficulty sitting for a deposition for seven hours straight,
this bill would allow their seven hours of deposition to be
spread over two or more days. This exception is not contained
in the federal rules.
AB 1875
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By adopting the federal rule that a deposition shall be limited
to seven hours unless otherwise stipulated or ordered, this bill
effectively reverses the presumption in existing state law.
Under existing law, that is, there is no limitation on the
length of a deposition unless the parties stipulate to
limitations or the court orders a limitation. This bill, on the
other hand, would begin with the presumption that a deposition
is limited to seven hours unless the parties stipulate otherwise
or the court orders an extension.
Supporters contend, among other things, that this bill merely
adopts the one-day of seven hours from the Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure, and that if the rule is workable in the federal
courts then it will also work in the state courts. There is
some justification for this position. Federal courts, after
all, handle litigation every bit as complex as litigation
handled in California courts. There are also important
differences between state and federal courts, some of which may
argue for a greater presumptive limits on the length of
depositions in state court and some of which may cut the other
way. These differences include case volume and court resources,
the general type and complexity of the issues in many cases,
practice styles of counsel, rules of procedure, court
"cultures," and the availability of judicial supervision. The
author, the sponsor, have engaged in and are committed to
working with Assembly Judiciary Committee counsel and continuing
a dialog involving the courts and other court users in an effort
to develop consensus on an approach that will promote fair
outcomes and the efficient and economical administration of
justice.
Analysis Prepared by : Thomas Clark / JUD. / (916) 319-2334
FN: 0003503