Rule 30(b)(6) Depositions in Employment Litigation: Strategies for Deposing and Defending the Corporate Witness
Drafting and Responding to Deposition Notices; Selecting the Right Designee; Issues Unique to Employment Claims
Recording of a 90-minute CLE video webinar with Q&A
This CLE webinar will prepare employment counsel to depose or defend corporate representatives under the amended Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(b)(6), taking into account issues unique to employment litigation. The program will provide best practices for plaintiffs to meet the Rule 30(b)(6) "meet and confer" requirements, draft the notice, effectively question the employer's designated witness, and handle objections. The program will also discuss how defense counsel can effectively respond to the deposition notice, select and prepare the employer's designated representative, and effectively manage the scope of the deposition.
Outline
- Rule 30(b)(6) overview
- Issues unique to employment claims and how they may affect deposition strategy and preparation
- Plaintiff concerns
- Advantages vs. disadvantages of Rule 30(b)(6) witness
- Notice of deposition
- Meet and confer requirement
- Timing/sequence considerations
- Selecting exhibits
- Defending objections
- When the witness is unprepared
- Defense concerns
- Evaluating and objecting to the notice
- Moving for protection
- Privilege considerations
- Other objections
- Investigation
- Selecting the designee
- Preparing the designee
- Defending the deposition
- Objections
- Instructions to the witness
- Evaluating and objecting to the notice
- Practitioner takeaways
Benefits
The panel will review these and other important issues:
- What issues unique to employment claims may affect how counsel prepares to take or defend a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition?
- What considerations should plaintiff's counsel keep in mind when noticing the deposition?
- How should defense counsel strategically determine who should represent the company in the deposition?
- What are the particular dangers of designating a lawyer, or someone else with extensive privileged information, as a 30(b)(6) witness?
Faculty
Andrew J. (Andy) Boling
Attorney, Employment Law Chair
Kelleher + Holland
Mr. Boling represents domestic and international clients doing business in the US and around the world, especially in... | Read More
Mr. Boling represents domestic and international clients doing business in the US and around the world, especially in the areas of employment law counseling, litigation, compliance, internal investigations, and crisis counseling in emergency situations, including those arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. He counsels clients through all phases of the employment cycle, including hiring, restrictive covenants, disciplinary action, and leave management, and has substantial experience in successfully handling both large-scale reductions in force and high-profile individual employee separations.
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Anita Mazumdar Chambers
Principal
The Employment Law Group
Ms. Chambers primarily focuses on matters of discrimination and retaliation. She has extensive experience in conducting... | Read More
Ms. Chambers primarily focuses on matters of discrimination and retaliation. She has extensive experience in conducting corporate investigations to identify and resolve issues before needing to resort to legal action. Ms. Chambers also works in whistleblower protection, severance negotiations, and employee counseling. She has served as lead litigator in jurisdictions across the country, developing a special interest in cases of gender discrimination and retaliation in violation of the federal False Claims Act. In addition to her work in federal district courts, she routinely litigates matters before the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Merit Systems Protection Board. Ms. Chambers also advocates for employee rights before possible violations necessitate legal action. Companies often ask her to conduct compliance investigations to root out any problems in their own investigative structure and to help evaluate the validity of claims, such as sexual harassment, in order to provide proper resolution. She has been praised for her quick turnaround and thorough reports.
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Robert P. Lewis
Member
Epstein Becker & Green
For more than 25 years, U.S. multinational and domestic employers needing strong legal representation have sought out... | Read More
For more than 25 years, U.S. multinational and domestic employers needing strong legal representation have sought out attorney Mr. Lewis. He helps clients in the financial services, health care, luxury retail, and other industries with all their employment law matters arising under U.S. and foreign law, including defending employers in litigation, arbitrations, and other forms of alternative dispute resolution. He advises on cross-border and domestic matters involving harassment, discrimination, retaliation, wage and hour requirements, gender pay equity, and restrictive covenants and trade secrets. The matters Mr. Lewis has defended at the federal, state, and local levels involve discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour, wrongful discharge, individual employment contracts, employee disloyalty and restrictive covenants, commission and compensation disputes, and other work-related tort claims. He has lectured and written extensively on issues of i employment law.
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