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Article: Facing a deposition? Drop the oratory. (Chief Concern).(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- Chief Executive (U.S.)
- Article date:
- June 1, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Chief Executive Magazine. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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What an enviable record I had. After 25 years in consumer products, I had managed to successfully avoid being personally deposed in a single lawsuit. So when my general counsel told me last year that I was being subpoenaed for a deposition in a commercial matter involving the federal government, I felt instantly defeated.
But then I thought, this could be my chance to help solve a big problem, to explain our case to the other side in a convincing way. "No problem," I said. "Just tell me what our argument is and I'll go in there and sell them on it."
And then my comeuppance began. Our GC was direct: "No, you won't. You will go to deposition training with ...