Depositions are the single most important – and stressful – aspect of a civil lawsuit other than trial. Since over 85% of all civil case settle before trial, excellent deposition prep is of paramount importance.

If you talk to any lawyer, he or she will tell you there just simply isn’t enough time in the day to do everything that needs to be done to properly prepare their cases. Lawyers sell their time by the hour and there just simply are not enough hours in the day.

What no lawyer will tell you is that deposition prep is the single most neglected job responsibility as a result. Lawyers simply run out of time. Even if they intended to devote time to deposition prep, they often end up skipping it and “winging it.”

What that means to you is that you very likely will walk into the single most important part of your lawsuit (if you are a plaintiff) or a lawsuit in which you have been sued (if you are a defendant) woefully unprepared.

What can you do about it?

A few things. First and foremost, if you are represented by an attorney and your lawyer has not spent at least two hour with you (for the very simplest of cases) specifically and exclusively devoted to deposition preparation, demand that he or she do so. Make sure your deposition prep takes place shortly before your deposition is scheduled to occur. You want your lawyer’s advice fresh in your mind when your deposition starts.

Also, regardless of whether you have an attorney, you can prepare yourself. Lots of information exists on the Internet and at public libraries and law libraries. The best method to prepare yourself for your deposition is to watch a video on the subject. A video will show you, in addition to telling you, exactly what to expect and, more importantly, exactly what your deposition will look, sound and even feel like. The best deposition prep video on the market is Deposition Rescue. Prepared by lawyers with decades of experience, it will provide you with everything you need to give your best deposition testimony. The best part of this deposition prep video is it is available online. That means you can watch it on your desktop or laptop computer, your smart phone or tablet (e.g., iPad). You can watch it anywhere you want, anytime you want and, most importantly, as many times as you want. It’s like a security blanket.

For much more advice on deposition questions and how to handle them, please visit Deposition Rescue.

Jeff L. Williams is a former trial attorney and co-founder of New Media Legal Publishing, Inc.