Art. 1443.  Examination and cross-examination; record of examination; oath; objections

A.  Examination and cross-examination of witnesses may proceed as permitted at the trial under the provisions of the Louisiana Code of Evidence.  The officer before whom the deposition is to be taken shall administer an oath or affirmation to the witness and shall personally, or by someone acting under his direction and in his presence, record the testimony of the witness.  The testimony shall be taken stenographically or recorded by any other means.  If requested by one of the parties, the testimony shall be transcribed.

B.  All objections made at the time of the examination to the qualifications of the officer taking the deposition, or to the manner of taking it, or to the evidence presented, or to the conduct of any party, and any other objection to the proceedings, shall be noted by the officer upon the deposition.  The officer shall cease or suspend recordation of the testimony, questions, objections, or any other statements only upon agreement of all counsel and parties present at the deposition, or upon termination or suspension of the deposition pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure Article 1444.  Any objection during a deposition shall be stated concisely and in a non-argumentative and non-suggestive manner.  Evidence objected to shall be taken subject to the objections.  Counsel shall cooperate with and be courteous to each other and to the witness and otherwise conduct themselves as required in open court and shall be subject to the power of the court to punish for contempt.  In lieu of participating in the oral examination, parties may serve written questions in a sealed envelope on the party taking the deposition, and he shall transmit them to the officer, or anyone authorized to take oaths, who shall propound them to the witness and record the answers verbatim.

C.  "Officer" as used in this Article means a certified shorthand reporter currently holding a valid certificate issued by the Board of Examiners of Certified Shorthand Reporters pursuant to the provisions of R.S. 37:2551 et seq., and an official court reporter, and a deputy official court reporter, as defined in R.S. 37:2555 (C) and (D).

D.  Unless otherwise stipulated or as provided in Article 1455, objections are considered reserved until trial or other use of the deposition.  A party may instruct a deponent not to answer only when necessary to preserve a privilege, to enforce a limitation on evidence imposed by the court, to prevent harassing or repetitious questions, or to prevent questions which seek information that is neither admissible at trial nor reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence.

E.  If the court finds that an objection made during a deposition taken for trial purposes is in violation of this Article, the court shall order the party in violation to pay for the editing or redacting of the transcript or video, along with any other costs or sanctions the court deems appropriate unless good cause is shown.

Acts 1976, No. 574, §1; Acts 1988, No. 515, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 1989; Acts 1990, No. 295, §1; Acts 1990, No. 842, §1, eff. July 24, 1990; Acts 1997, No. 1056, §1; Acts 2004, No. 365, §1; Acts 2010, No. 456, §1; Acts 2010, No. 458, §1.