Your Deposition in a Florida Injury Case: What to Expect, How to Prepare, and Why It Matters So Much

By Jay Wasserman

For most injured people, the deposition is the only time before trial that they will answer questions under oath, and for most cases, it is the closest thing to a trial that will ever happen. Only a small fraction of Florida injury cases ever reaches a jury. Nearly all of them settle, and the deposition of the injured person is one of the moments that most directly decides for how much.

That is not because the deposition is a trap. It is because the insurance company is paying a defense lawyer to answer a few practical questions before it sets a value on the claim: How did this happen? Who was at fault? What was this person’s health like before? What treatment followed, and why? How has life actually changed? And, beneath all of those, how will this person come across to a jury? The deposition is where those questions get answered, in a sworn transcript, and often on video.

This article explains what a deposition is under Florida’s rules, what happens on the day, the subjects defense lawyers almost always cover, the mistakes that cost injured people money, and what happens after the transcript is typed. It reflects how we prepare our own clients for their depositions.

What a deposition is, and what it is not

A deposition is sworn testimony taken outside the courtroom during the discovery phase of a lawsuit. It is governed by Rule 1.310 of the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. The lawyer who wants the testimony serves a written notice on every party stating the time, place, and the name of the person to be deposed. The witness takes an oath administered by a court reporter or other authorized officer, and the reporter records every word.

A few things it is not:

• It is not a hearing. There is no judge in the room. Nobody rules on objections as they are made; they are preserved for later. That is why the lawyers’ conduct is governed by rules, and why a witness’s own discipline matters so much.
• It is not a conversation. The defense lawyer may be friendly, and often is. The transcript does not record tone. It records words, and a casual answer reads exactly like a careful one.
• It is not a recorded statement. Many clients have already given a statement to an adjuster or, in an auto case, an examination under oath to their own insurer. Florida’s PIP statute, Fla. Stat. § 627.736(6)(g), allows policies to require an examination under oath, and the policy usually makes cooperation a condition of benefits. Those happen before or outside the lawsuit. A deposition is part of the case itself, and the testimony can be used at trial.

Depositions usually come after the written exchange of information. Since January 1, 2025, Florida’s amended rules require each party to make initial disclosures of witnesses, documents, damages computations, and insurance within 60 days after the complaint is served, and parties typically also exchange interrogatories under Rule 1.340 and document requests under Rule 1.350 before anyone sits down to testify. Defense lawyers come to the plaintiff’s deposition having read the medical records, the interrogatory answers, the crash report, and anything they have found on their own.

How deposition testimony is used later

The reason to take a deposition seriously is spelled out in Rule 1.330, which governs how deposition testimony can be used in court.

• Any party’s deposition can be used by an adverse party for any purpose. Under Rule 1.330(a)(2), the defense does not need to call you to the stand to put your deposition in front of a jury. It can read or play your answers as evidence.
• Any deposition can be used to contradict or impeach the witness. If you testify at trial that your back pain began the day of the crash, and your deposition says it started a week later, the jury will hear both versions. The inconsistency, not the pain, becomes the subject.
• Depositions of unavailable witnesses and of expert or skilled witnesses can be used at trial. That is why the depositions of treating doctors are often taken on video and played to the jury instead of bringing the physician to court.

Objections are handled differently than at trial. Under Rule 1.330(d)(3), errors in the form of a question or answer are waived unless they are raised at the deposition, so you will hear your lawyer say “objection, form” from time to time. Objections to relevance and other substantive grounds are generally preserved until the testimony is offered at trial, when a judge rules on them.

Who is in the room

A typical plaintiff’s deposition in a Florida injury case includes:

• The defense lawyer, usually retained by the at-fault party’s liability insurer. If there are several defendants, each may have a lawyer, and each may ask questions.
• Your lawyer, who sits beside you, defends the deposition, makes objections, and may ask follow-up questions at the end.
• The court reporter, who administers the oath and records the testimony stenographically.
• A videographer, if the deposition is being recorded on video. Rule 1.310(b)(4) allows any party to videotape a deposition without a court order, so long as the notice says so and identifies the operator. Many defense firms now video the plaintiff’s deposition as a matter of routine, because they want the insurer and, if it comes to it, the jury to see how the witness presents.
• Sometimes, a party. Parties to the case are ordinarily entitled to attend depositions. In a car crash case, that occasionally means the other driver is across the table; in a premises case, a corporate representative of the store or property owner may sit in.
• Sometimes, an interpreter. If English is not your first language, insist on a qualified interpreter and use them for every answer, even the ones you think you could manage in English. A mistranslated answer is still your answer.

Depositions are commonly taken at a lawyer’s office or a court reporting firm. Remote video depositions, which became routine during the pandemic, remain common by agreement or court order, though we generally prefer to defend a client’s deposition in the same room.

Florida’s rules do not impose a fixed time limit on depositions like the seven-hour rule in federal court, but a court can limit the length or scope of a deposition through a protective order under Rule 1.280, and Rule 1.310(d) lets a party stop the examination to seek one if it is being conducted in bad faith or to unreasonably annoy, embarrass, or oppress the witness. In our experience, the plaintiff’s deposition in a straightforward car crash case takes two to four hours. In a catastrophic injury, trucking, or medical malpractice case, it can take a full day or more.

What the defense lawyer will ask about

Every case is different, but the outline of a plaintiff’s deposition is remarkably consistent. Expect most or all of the following.

Background. Your name, address history, family, education, work history, and whether you have ever been convicted of a crime. Under Fla. Stat. § 90.610, a witness’s credibility can be attacked with a felony conviction or a crime involving dishonesty, so the question is routine. Answer it accurately; your lawyer will already know the answer.

Prior accidents, injuries, and claims. This is the subject defense lawyers care about most, and the one where cases are most often damaged. Expect questions about every prior car crash, fall, sports injury, workers’ compensation claim, disability application, and lawsuit, and about any prior treatment to the same part of the body. Insurers search industry claim databases and pull prior medical records, and the defense lawyer will usually know the answer before asking. A prior back injury does not defeat a back injury claim; Florida law allows recovery for the aggravation of a pre-existing condition. A prior back injury that you forgot, minimized, or denied can defeat it.

The incident itself. Where you were going, what you saw, how fast everyone was moving, what the weather and lighting were, what you were doing in the seconds before, whether you were on your phone, what was said afterward, and who was there. In a fall case, expect questions about your footwear, whether you saw the hazard, how long you had been in the store, and whether you had walked the same path before. Our guides to car accidents and slip and fall claims cover the liability rules those questions are aimed at.

Medical treatment. When symptoms started, when you first sought care, which providers you saw and in what order, how you found each one, whether you followed the treatment plan, any gaps in treatment, and what you were told about your prognosis. Gaps and missed appointments get special attention, because the defense will argue they show the injury was not serious or that something else intervened.

How you found your doctors. Since 2023, Fla. Stat. § 768.0427 requires disclosure in injury cases of letters of protection, the provider’s itemized charges, and whether the claimant was referred to the provider by their lawyer. Before that statute, the Florida Supreme Court had held in Worley v. Central Florida YMCA, 228 So. 3d 18 (Fla. 2017), that the attorney-client privilege protected a lawyer’s referral of a client to a doctor. The 2023 law was written to change that result. Expect direct questions about who sent you to each provider and whether you are treating under a letter of protection, and answer them straightforwardly. Our guide to where the settlement money goes explains how letters of protection are handled at the end of a case.

Damages and daily life. What you can no longer do, or can do only with pain; work you have missed and why; hobbies, chores, travel, and family activities; sleep; mood; and what your days look like now compared with before. Expect follow-up questions designed to find the activities you can still do: whether you have gone to the beach, traveled, coached a child’s team, done yard work, or posted any of it online.

Conversations about the case. You may be asked who you have talked to about the accident. Your communications with your lawyer are protected by the attorney-client privilege under Fla. Stat. § 90.502, and your lawyer will instruct you not to reveal them. The underlying facts are not privileged. You cannot refuse to describe what happened at the intersection because you also described it to your lawyer.

Surveillance and social media

Defense lawyers and insurers in serious injury cases frequently hire investigators to film the injured person, and nearly always review their social media. Florida law has settled rules about both, and they explain why a deposition is often scheduled before the defense discloses what it has.

In Dodson v. Persell, 390 So. 2d 704 (Fla. 1980), the Florida Supreme Court held that surveillance materials the defense intends to use at trial must be disclosed in discovery, but that the court may allow the defense to depose the plaintiff first, so that the plaintiff’s testimony is recorded before the plaintiff knows what the video shows. In Northup v. Acken, 865 So. 2d 1267 (Fla. 2004), the Court made clear that materials reasonably expected or intended to be used at trial, including for impeachment, are subject to disclosure.

The practical lesson is simple: describe your limitations accurately, including the good days. If you can carry groceries in from the car but cannot lift your toddler, say exactly that. A witness who testifies “I can’t lift anything” and then appears on video carrying a cooler has not just lost a point; they have handed the defense a theme for trial.

Social media works the same way. In Nucci v. Target Corp., 162 So. 3d 146 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015), a slip-and-fall plaintiff was ordered to produce photographs from her Facebook account because they were relevant to her claimed injuries and loss of enjoyment of life. Do not delete posts or accounts after an accident; destroying relevant evidence can lead to sanctions and to the jury being told it may assume the missing material would have hurt you. Do, however, stop posting about your activities, your case, and your health, and expect questions about what you have posted.

Fault: why every word about the accident matters more than it used to

Since March 24, 2023, Florida has followed a modified comparative negligence rule. Under Fla. Stat. § 768.81(6), a plaintiff who is found more than 50 percent at fault for their own injuries recovers nothing, outside of medical negligence cases. A plaintiff who is 50 percent or less at fault recovers damages reduced by their share.

That change made the plaintiff’s deposition more consequential. Before 2023, a jury that found a plaintiff 60 percent at fault still awarded 40 percent of the damages. Now, the difference between 50 and 51 percent is the difference between a reduced recovery and no recovery at all. Defense lawyers know that, and the questions about speed, distraction, lookout, footwear, lighting, and whether you saw the hazard are aimed squarely at moving the percentage.

That does not mean you should shade your testimony. It means you should testify precisely. “I don’t know how fast I was going” is a different answer from “I was going the speed limit,” and both are different from “I was probably going a little fast, like everyone.” Only one of them may be true, and your lawyer will have spent time with you on the facts long before the deposition.

One related rule surprises many people. Under Fla. Stat. § 316.066(4), statements made by a person involved in a crash to a law enforcement officer for the purpose of completing the crash report are privileged and cannot be used as evidence in a civil or criminal trial. That privilege does not extend to the deposition. What you say under oath about the crash can be used.

Objections and instructions not to answer

Your lawyer will object at times during the deposition, but the rules keep those objections short. Rule 1.310(c) requires that any objection be stated concisely and in a nonargumentative and nonsuggestive manner. A lawyer may not coach a witness through speaking objections.

The same rule allows a lawyer to instruct a witness not to answer only in three situations: to preserve a privilege, to enforce a limitation the court has ordered, or to present a motion to terminate or limit the examination under Rule 1.310(d). Outside those situations, you will answer the question even after your lawyer objects. The objection is preserved; the judge decides later whether the answer comes in.

Two practical rules follow:

• When your lawyer objects, stop and wait. Let the objection be made in full, then answer the question unless you are instructed not to.
• Answer before you take a break. You can ask for a break at almost any time, but not while a question is waiting for an answer. Rules about whether a lawyer and client may confer during breaks vary from court to court, so ask your lawyer in advance what the practice will be in your case.

How we prepare clients

Good deposition preparation is not about scripting answers. Scripted testimony sounds scripted, and it falls apart under follow-up questions. Preparation is about making sure the witness understands the process, knows the documents, and has thought carefully about the subjects that will come up. In our practice, that usually means:

• A preparation session, sometimes two, held a few days before the deposition rather than the morning of. For serious injury cases, we often practice the most difficult areas with a mock examination.
• Reviewing the documents the defense will use, including the crash report, the client’s interrogatory answers, prior recorded statements, the medical records, and any photographs. Interrogatory answers are sworn too, and the deposition should be consistent with them. If an interrogatory answer is wrong or incomplete, the time to correct it is before the deposition, not during it.
• Walking through the prior medical history. We pull prior records ourselves so that nothing in them surprises our client in front of the defense lawyer.
• Talking through the client’s actual daily life, so that their description of their limitations is specific, accurate, and complete, including the activities they can still do.

The rules for answering questions

The core advice we give every client fits on an index card:

1. Tell the truth. It is the only rule that cannot be broken. False testimony under oath can be prosecuted as perjury under Fla. Stat. § 837.02, and Florida courts can dismiss a case entirely for fraud on the court. In Cox v. Burke, 706 So. 2d 43 (Fla. 5th DCA 1998), the court affirmed the dismissal of a plaintiff’s case after the trial court found the plaintiff had given false and misleading testimony in discovery. Courts reserve that sanction for deliberate deception proven by clear and convincing evidence; honest mistakes and imperfect memory are treated as matters of credibility. But the risk is real, and it is entirely avoidable.
2. Listen to the whole question, then pause. The pause gives you time to think and gives your lawyer time to object.
3. Answer only the question asked. If the question is “Do you know what time it is?”, the answer is “Yes.” Volunteering information is how depositions grow from two hours to six, and how new subjects get opened.
4. Do not guess. “I don’t know” and “I don’t remember” are complete, honest answers when they are true. A guess becomes testimony. An estimate is acceptable only if you say it is an estimate, and only if you have a basis for it.
5. Ask for clarification. If you do not understand a question, say so. If a question contains a fact you disagree with, do not adopt it by answering around it.
6. Speak in words. The reporter cannot record a nod. “Uh-huh” and “uh-uh” look nearly identical in a transcript.
7. Do not argue, and do not perform. The defense lawyer is not the person you need to convince. A calm, consistent, specific witness is what persuades an adjuster and a jury, and the video will show who you are.
8. Ask to see the document. If you are asked about a record, an email, or a photo, you are entitled to look at it before answering.
9. Correct a mistake when you notice it. If you realize an earlier answer was wrong, say so on the record as soon as you notice. A correction made the same day reads as honesty; a correction made after the fact reads as strategy.
10. Dress as you would for court, and bring nothing you have not shown your lawyer. Anything you bring to a deposition and use to refresh your memory may have to be produced.

After the deposition: reading, signing, and the errata sheet

At the end of the deposition, the court reporter will usually ask whether you will read or waive. Under Rule 1.310(e), when the testimony is transcribed, the transcript is to be submitted to the witness to read unless the witness and the parties waive that right. If you read, you can list changes in form or substance on a correction sheet, often called an errata sheet, with a statement of your reasons, and the corrections are attached to the transcript.

We almost always have our clients read. Court reporters are skilled, but a misheard name, a dropped “not,” or an incorrect number can change the meaning of an answer. Substantive changes, however, have limits. The original answer stays in the transcript alongside the change, and the defense can comment on the change at trial. An errata sheet is for fixing transcription errors and genuine mistakes, not for rewriting testimony that turned out to be unhelpful.

How the deposition affects settlement

After the deposition, the defense lawyer almost always writes a report to the insurance company. It summarizes the testimony, identifies any inconsistencies with the records, and, in many cases, rates the plaintiff as a witness: credible or not, sympathetic or not, likely to connect with a jury or likely to put one off. If the deposition was recorded on video, the adjuster may watch parts of it.

That report feeds directly into the claim’s reserve and the authority the adjuster brings to mediation, which most Florida circuits require before trial under Rules 1.700 through 1.730. A plaintiff who testified clearly, consistently, and without exaggeration usually sees that reflected in the numbers. A plaintiff whose deposition revealed a concealed prior injury, an unexplained gap in treatment, or a social media history that contradicts their claims usually sees that too.

The deposition also matters in cases involving limited coverage. When the defendant’s insurance limits are low compared to the injuries, a well-documented deposition is part of the record that supports a policy limits demand and, where available, a claim under your own uninsured motorist coverage.

Depositions your lawyer takes

The plaintiff is not the only person deposed. In most injury cases, the plaintiff’s lawyer deposes the defendant driver or property owner, eyewitnesses, the investigating officer, and, in cases against a business, a corporate representative designated under Rule 1.310(b)(6) to testify on the company’s behalf about its policies, training, inspections, maintenance, and records. In a truck accident, that means the motor carrier’s safety practices; in a negligent security case, it means the property’s crime history and security measures; in a medical malpractice case, it means the providers and the hospital’s protocols.

Those depositions are where liability is usually proven. They are also where a defense lawyer learns how prepared the other side is. A case in which the plaintiff testified well and the defense witnesses were thoroughly examined is a case the insurance company has to value as a trial case.

A hypothetical

Hypothetically: a Palm Beach County restaurant manager is rear-ended at a light and treats for neck and shoulder pain, eventually undergoing a cervical fusion. Four years earlier, she saw a chiropractor for six weeks after a minor fender-bender and recovered fully. Her lawyer obtains those records, and they spend part of the preparation session on them.

At her deposition, the defense lawyer asks whether she has ever been treated for neck pain before. She answers that she had a minor accident in 2022, saw a chiropractor for about six weeks, and had no further neck symptoms or treatment until this crash. Asked about her limitations, she describes being unable to work double shifts or lift cases of supplies, and adds, when asked, that she still walks her dog every evening and went to her sister’s wedding in Tampa.

The defense lawyer’s report to the insurer notes that her account of the prior accident matched the records, that she did not exaggerate, and that she would be credible before a jury. The defense surveillance shows her walking her dog. Her case is valued accordingly.

Now imagine the same deposition with one change: she answers “No, never” to the question about prior neck treatment, because she had forgotten the chiropractor or thought it did not count. The records come out, the defense files a motion, and the next six months of the case are about her credibility instead of her fusion. Nothing about her injury changed. Only the transcript did.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to give a deposition? If you are a party to a lawsuit and you are properly noticed, yes. A party who fails to appear for a properly noticed deposition can face sanctions, up to and including dismissal of their claims in serious cases. If the date does not work, tell your lawyer right away so it can be rescheduled.

How long will my deposition take? It depends on the case. A plaintiff’s deposition in a straightforward car crash case often takes two to four hours. Cases with catastrophic injuries, multiple defendants, or complicated medical histories can take a full day or longer.

Can my lawyer stop the defense lawyer from asking certain questions? Only in limited circumstances. Your lawyer can object, and can instruct you not to answer to protect a privilege, to enforce a court-ordered limit, or to seek a protective order if the examination is being conducted in bad faith or to harass you. Otherwise, you will answer, and the judge will decide later whether the answer can be used.

Will I be asked about my prior medical history? Almost certainly, particularly about anything involving the same part of the body. Answer completely and accurately. A pre-existing condition does not prevent recovery for its aggravation, but an inaccurate answer about it can do lasting damage to a case.

Can I bring notes? Generally, you should not. Anything you use to refresh your memory while testifying may have to be shown to the other side. Talk with your lawyer before bringing any document.

What if I make a mistake during my deposition? Correct it on the record as soon as you notice it. If you notice it later, tell your lawyer; transcription errors and genuine mistakes can be addressed when you read the transcript, but substantive changes remain visible and can be commented on at trial.

Is the deposition the same as a recorded statement or an examination under oath? No. A recorded statement is given to an insurance adjuster, usually before a lawsuit. An examination under oath is a sworn interview your own insurer may require under your policy. A deposition is sworn testimony taken in the lawsuit itself and can be used at trial. Speak with a lawyer before giving any of them.

Does a good deposition mean my case will settle? Not by itself, but it helps. The defense lawyer’s report on your deposition is one of the most important documents in the insurer’s file when it decides what the case is worth.

Talk to a Florida personal injury attorney

A deposition is a few hours of testimony that can shape the value of a case for the rest of its life. The people who do well are not the most polished or the most articulate. They are the ones who understand the process, know their own records, and tell the truth precisely, including the parts that do not help.

KWBR’s personal injury, auto accident, premises liability, medical malpractice, and wrongful death practices represent injured people and families throughout Broward, Palm Beach, and Miami-Dade Counties, from our Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, and Orlando offices. We prepare every client for their deposition ourselves, and we defend it in the room. If you have been hurt and have been served with a deposition notice, or you want a firm that will prepare you before one is ever scheduled, contact us for a free consultation.

This article is for general informational purposes and is not legal advice. Rules of procedure, local practices, and statutes change and vary with the facts, and every case turns on its own circumstances; consult a qualified Florida attorney about your situation.