30(b)(6): Deposing Corporations. Organizations & the Government, 0517 COBJ, Vol. 46 No. 5 Pg. 53

AuthorJohn Taussig, J.

46 Colo.Law. 53

30(b)(6): Deposing Corporations. Organizations & the Government

Vol. 46, No. 5 [Page 53]

The Colorado Lawyer

May, 2017

Reviews of Legal Resources

John Taussig, J.

30(b)(6): Deposing Corporations Organizations & the Government

by Mark R. Kosieradzki 512 pp.; $155 TrialGuides, LLC, 2016 www.trialguides. coin/product/3 0b6

Learn from the mistakes of others; you 'II never live long enough to make them all yourself.

Alfred E. Neuman, Mad Magazine

I appreciate writers who begin their thoughts with a quote, sometimes admiring the obscurity of the relationship, sometimes wishing I understood it. I chose Alfred E. Neuman's because it is one of my favorites and because when it comes to deposing organizations, even in a practice like mine where I routinely sue and depose insurers, I could never personally make all the mistakes necessary to learn everything this book teaches. Some of you take or defend many 30(b)(6) depositions, most of you, fewer; regardless, this book has something for everyone.

I met author Mark Kosieradzki just last year and quickly learned he is one of those people who seems to be good at everything he does, so I wanted badly to find something to criticize in his book. I couldn't find it. While I have read many "how to" and trial-lawyering books during my 30+ year career, I learned more irom this book about how to do what I do in my practice (Irom a pragmatic perspective) than any other resource.

I share with Kosieradzki the view that you should probably read the rules as an early step to using them. Far too many lawyers practice using folklore (copying and pasting from the work of others, which can be a reasonable thing to do—it is just not a substitute for reading the rules). This book is for those of us who want to read and understand the rules. There aren’t many silver bullets, but 30(b)(6) (the book) is one. Every trial lawyer and litigator who sues or defends organizations, or deposes them, should read it.

I have mentioned trial lawyers and litigators. I was taught that depositions are taken to set up the testimony for trial. The end game is always the trial. That is what “trial lawyers” do. I do not recommend abandoning that school of thought, but there is another valid one: most civil cases settle, so depositions should be taken to achieve the best possible settlement. That seems like a litigation strategy, not a trial strategy to...

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