Defending Rule 30(b)(6) Corporate Depositions in Employment Litigation

Best Practices for Responding to a Deposition Notice, Selecting and Preparing Witnesses

Recording of a 90-minute CLE webinar with Q&A

Conducted on Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Recorded event now available

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Course Materials

This CLE course will prepare employment counsel to effectively defend depositions of corporate representatives during the course of pending employment litigation. The panel will discuss how to respond to a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition notice and select and prepare witnesses for the deposition.

Description

The Rule 30(b)(6) deposition allows a party to directly question corporate representatives about specific topics related to pending employment litigation. Testimony obtained during the deposition may be used by the discovering party for any purpose and binds the corporation.

Rule 30(b)(6) depositions present complex challenges and potential liability exposure for companies defending an employment lawsuit. Counsel must strategically determine who should represent the corporation at the deposition, how much preparation is adequate, and how to deal with privilege issues.

Listen as our panel of experienced employment litigators explains how companies can minimize risk to the corporate employer when responding to a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition notice and in selecting and preparing witnesses for the deposition.

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Outline

  1. Responding to the deposition notice
    1. Negotiating with opposing counsel
    2. Filing objections
    3. Seeking a protective order
    4. Filing reciprocal 30(b)(6) notice
  2. Selecting the 30(b)(6) witness(es)
    1. Using witness with detailed knowledge of subject matter versus witness with more isolated knowledge
    2. Designating a lawyer, or someone else privy to extensive privileged information, as witness
    3. Identifying witness who has been or is likely to be separately noticed for a fact deposition
    4. Identifying one versus multiple witnesses to address multiple topics in response to 30(b)(6) notice
  3. Preparing for the deposition
    1. “Educating” a witness in advance of a 30(b)(6) deposition
    2. How should instructions and preparation for a 30(b)(6) witness differ from instructions and preparation for an ordinary fact witness?
    3. When is it appropriate to prepare new written materials to produce at a 30(b)(6) deposition?
  4. Problem areas
    1. When the questioner goes beyond the scope of the notice
    2. When the witness proves to be insufficiently knowledgeable about a subject area
    3. When the witness provides inaccurate or incomplete information at the deposition

Benefits

The panel will review these and other key issues:

  • How should employment counsel respond to a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition notice that appears to be vague, overbroad or seeks privileged information?
  • What are the particular dangers of designating a lawyer, or someone else with extensive privileged information, as a 30(b)(6) witness?
  • To what extent must or should employment counsel educate a witness in advance of a 30(b)(6) deposition?

Faculty

Brian M. Brown
Brian M. Brown
Shareholder
Thorndal Armstrong Delk Balkenbush & Eisinger
Allegra J. Lawrence-Hardy
Allegra J. Lawrence-Hardy
Partner
Sutherland Asbill & Brennan

Ms. Lawrence-Hardy has extensive experience handling complex multi-party, multi-jurisdictional commercial and labor and...  |  Read More

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