§ 386. — Deposition.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 2USC386]
TITLE 2--THE CONGRESS
CHAPTER 12--CONTESTED ELECTIONS
Sec. 386. Deposition
(a) Oral examination
Either party may take the testimony of any person, including the
opposing party, by deposition upon oral examination for the purpose of
discovery or for use as evidence in the contested election case, or for
both purposes. Depositions shall be taken only within the time for the
taking of testimony prescribed in this section.
(b) Scope of examination
Witnesses may be examined regarding any matter, not privileged,
which is relevant to the subject matter involved in the pending
contested election case, whether it relates to the claim or defense of
the examining party or the claim or defense of the opposing party,
including the existence, description, nature, custody, condition and
location of any books, papers, documents, or other tangible things and
the identity and location of persons having knowledge of relevant facts.
After the examining party has examined the witness the opposing party
may cross examine.
(c) Order and time of taking testimony
The order in which the parties may take testimony shall be as
follows:
(1) Contestant may take testimony within thirty days after service
of the answer, or, if no answer is served within the time provided in
section 383 of this title, within thirty days after the time for answer
has expired.
(2) Contestee may take testimony within thirty days after
contestant's time for taking testimony has expired.
(3) If contestee has taken any testimony or has filed testimonial
affidavits or stipulations under section 387(c) of this title,
contestant may take rebuttal testimony within ten days after contestee's
time for taking testimony has expired.
(d) Officer before whom testimony may be taken
Testimony shall be taken before an officer authorized to administer
oaths by the laws of the United States or of the place where the
examination is held.
(e) Subpena
Attendance of witnesses may be compelled by subpena as provided in
section 388 of this title.
(f) Taking of testimony by party or his agent
At the taking of testimony, a party may appear and act in person, or
by his agent or attorney.
(g) Conduct of examination; recordation of testimony; notation of
objections; interrogatories
The officer before whom testimony is to be taken shall put the
witness under oath 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 and transcribed. All
objections made at the time of examination to the qualifications of the
officer taking the deposition, or to the manner of taking it, or to the
evidence presented, or the conduct of any party, and any other objection
to the proceedings, shall be noted by the officer upon the deposition.
Evidence objected to shall be taken subject to the objections. In lieu
of participating in the oral examination, a party served with a notice
of deposition may transmit written interrogatories to the officer, who
shall propound them to the witness and record the answers verbatim.
(h) Examination of deposition by witness; signature of witness or
officer; use of deposition
When the testimony is fully transcribed, the deposition shall be
submitted to the witness for examination and shall be read to or by him,
unless such examination and reading are waived by the witness and the
parties. Any changes in the form or substance which the witness desires
to make shall be entered upon the deposition by the officer with a
statement of the reasons given by the witness for making them. The
deposition shall be signed by the witness, unless the parties by
stipulation waive the signing or the witness is ill or cannot be found
or refuses to sign. If the deposition is not signed by the witness, the
officer shall sign it and note on the deposition the fact of the waiver
or of the illness or the absence of the witness or the fact of refusal
to sign together with the reason, if any, given therefor; and the
deposition may then be used as fully as though signed, unless on a
motion to suppress, the committee rules that the reasons given for the
refusal to sign require rejection of the deposition in whole or in part.
(Pub. L. 91-138, Sec. 7, Dec. 5, 1969, 83 Stat. 286.)
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in section 387 of this title.