Nev. R. Civ. P. 30

As amended through October 9, 2024

Rule 30 - Depositions by Oral Examination

(a)When a Deposition May Be Taken

(1)Without Leave. A party may, by oral questions, depose any person, including a party, without leave of court except as provided in Rule 30(a)(2). The deponent's attendance may be compelled by subpoena under Rule 45.

(2)With Leave. A party must obtain leave of court, and the court must grant leave to the extent consistent with Rule 26(b)(1) and (2)

(A) if the parties have not stipulated to the deposition and:

(i) the deposition would result in more than 10 depositions being taken under this rule or Rule 31 by the plaintiffs, or by the defendants, or by the third-party defendants, not counting any deposition that is solely a custodian-of-records deposition;

(ii) the deponent has already been deposed in the case; or

(iii) the party seeks to take the deposition before the time specified in Rule 26(a), unless the party certifies in the notice, with supporting facts, that the deponent is expected to leave Nevada and be unavailable for examination in the state after that time; or

(B) if the deponent is confined in prison.

(b)Notice of the Deposition; Other Formal Requirements.

(1) Notice in General. A party who wants to depose a person by oral questions must give not less than 14 days' written notice to every other party. The notice must state the time and place of the deposition and, if known, the deponent's name and address. If the name is unknown, the notice must provide a general description sufficient to identify the person or the particular class or group to which the person belongs.

(2)Producing Documents. If a subpoena duces tecum is to be served on the deponent, the materials designated for production, as set out in the subpoena, must be listed in the notice or in an attachment. The notice to a party deponent may be accompanied by a request under Rule 34 to produce documents and tangible things at the deposition.

(3)Method of Recording.

(A) Method Stated in the Notice. The party who notices the deposition must state in the notice the method for recording the testimony. Unless the court orders otherwise, testimony may be recorded by audio, audiovisual, or stenographic means. The noticing party bears the recording costs. Any party may arrange to transcribe a deposition.

(B) Additional Method. With prior notice to the deponent and other parties, any party may designate another method for recording the testimony in addition to that specified in the original notice. That party bears the expense of the additional record or transcript unless the court orders otherwise.

(4)By Remote Means. The parties may stipulate-or the court may on motion order-that a deposition be taken by telephone or other remote means. For the purpose of this rule and Rules 28(a), 37(a)(2), and 37(b), the deposition takes place where the deponent answers the questions.

(5)Officer's Duties.

(A) Before the Deposition. Unless the parties stipulate otherwise, a deposition must be conducted before an officer appointed or designated under Rule 28. The officer must begin the deposition with an on-the-record statement that includes:

(i) the officer's name and business address;

(ii) the date, time, and place of the deposition;

(iii) the deponent's name;

(iv) the officer's administration of the oath or affirmation to the deponent; and

(v) the identity of all persons present.

(B) Conducting the Deposition; Avoiding Distortion. If the deposition is recorded nonstenographically, the officer must repeat the items in Rule 30(b)(5)(A)(i)-(iii) at the beginning of each unit of the recording medium. The deponent's and attorneys' appearance or demeanor must not be distorted through recording techniques.

(C)After the Deposition. At the end of a deposition, the officer must state on the record that the deposition is complete and must set out any stipulations made by the attorneys about custody of the transcript or recording and of the exhibits, or about any other pertinent matters.

(6)Notice or Subpoena Directed to an Organization. In its notice or subpoena, a party may name as the deponent a public or private corporation, a partnership, an association, a governmental agency, or other entity and must describe with reasonable particularity the matters for examination. The named organization must then designate one or more officers, directors, or managing agents, or designate other persons who consent to testify on its behalf; and it may set out the matters on which each person designated will testify. A subpoena must advise a nonparty organization of its duty to make this designation. The persons designated must testify about information known or reasonably available to the organization. Rule 30(b)(6) does not preclude a deposition by any other procedure allowed by these rules.

(c)Examination and Cross-Examination; Record of the Examination; Objections; Written Questions.

(1)Examination and Cross-Examination. The examination and cross-examination of a deponent proceed as they would at trial under Nevada law of evidence, except NRS 47.040-47.080 and NRS 50.155. After putting the deponent under oath or affirmation, the officer must record the testimony by the method designated under Rule 30(b)(3)(A). The testimony must be recorded by the officer personally or by a person acting in the presence and under the direction of the officer.

(2)Objections. An objection at the time of the examination- whether to evidence, to a party's conduct, to the officer's qualifications, to the manner of taking the deposition, or to any other aspect of the deposition- must be noted on the record, but the examination still proceeds; the testimony is taken subject to any objection. An objection must be stated concisely in a nonargumentative and nonsuggestive manner. A person may instruct a deponent not to answer only when necessary to preserve a privilege, to enforce a limitation ordered by the court, or to present a motion under Rule 30(d)(3).

(3)Participating Through Written Questions. Instead of participating in the oral examination, a party may serve written questions in a sealed envelope on the party noticing the deposition, who must deliver them to the officer. The officer must ask the deponent those questions and record the answers verbatim.

(d)Duration; Sanction; Motion to Terminate or Limit.

(1)Duration. Unless otherwise stipulated or ordered by the court, a deposition is limited to 1 day of 7 hours of testimony. The court must allow additional time consistent with Rule 26(b)(1) and (2) if needed to fairly examine the deponent or if the deponent, another person, or any other circumstance impedes or delays the examination.

(2)Sanction. The court may impose an appropriate sanction- including the reasonable expenses and attorney fees incurred by any party- on a person who impedes, delays, or frustrates the fair examination of the deponent.

(3)Motion to Terminate or Limit.

(A) Grounds. At any time during a deposition, the deponent or a party may move to terminate or limit it on the ground that it is being conducted in bad faith or in a manner that unreasonably annoys, embarrasses, or oppresses the deponent or party. The motion may be filed in the court where the action is pending or, if the deposition is being conducted under an out-of-state subpoena, where the deposition is being taken. If the objecting deponent or party so demands, the deposition must be suspended for the time necessary to obtain an order.

(B)Order. The court may order that the deposition be terminated or may limit its scope and manner as provided in Rule 26(c). If terminated, the deposition may be resumed only by order of the court where the action is pending.

(C)Award of Expenses. Rule 37(a)(5) applies to the award of expenses.

(e)Review by the Witness; Changes.

(1)Review; Statement of Changes. On request by the deponent or a party before the deposition is completed, the deponent must be allowed 30 days after being notified by the officer that the transcript or recording is available in which:

(A) to review the transcript or recording; and

(B) if there are changes in form or substance, to sign a statement listing the changes and the reasons for making them.

(2)Changes Indicated in the Officer's Certificate. The officer must note in the certificate prescribed by Rule 30(f)(1) whether a review was requested and, if so, must attach any changes the deponent makes during the 30-day period.

(f)Certification and Delivery; Exhibits; Copies of the Transcript or Recording; Filing.

(1)Certification and Delivery.The officer must certify in writing that the witness was duly sworn and that the deposition accurately records the witness's testimony. The certificate must accompany the record of the deposition. Unless the court orders otherwise, the officer must seal the deposition in an envelope or package bearing the title of the action and marked "Deposition of [witness's name]" and must promptly send it to the attorney who arranged for the transcript or recording. The attorney must store it under conditions that will protect it against loss, destruction, tampering, or deterioration.

(2)Documents and Tangible Things.

(A)Originals and Copies. Documents and tangible things produced for inspection during a deposition must, on a party's request, be marked for identification and attached to the deposition. Any party may inspect and copy them. But if the person who produced them wants to keep the originals, the person may:

(i) offer copies to be marked, attached to the deposition, and then used as originals-after giving all parties a fair opportunity to verify the copies by comparing them with the originals; or

(ii) give all parties a fair opportunity to inspect and copy the originals after they are marked-in which event the originals may be used as if attached to the deposition.

(B)Order Regarding the Originals. Any party may move for an order that the originals be attached to the deposition pending final disposition of the case.

(3)Copies of the Transcript or Recording. Unless otherwise stipulated or ordered by the court, the officer must retain the stenographic notes of a deposition taken stenographically or a copy of the recording of a deposition taken by another method. When paid reasonable charges, the officer must furnish a copy of the transcript or recording to any party or the deponent.

(4)Notice of Filing. A party who files the deposition must promptly notify all other parties of the filing.

(g)Failure to Attend a Deposition or Serve a Subpoena; Expenses. A party who, expecting a deposition to be taken, attends in person or by an attorney may recover reasonable expenses for attending, including attorney fees, if the noticing party failed to:

(1) attend and proceed with the deposition; or

(2) serve a subpoena on a nonparty deponent, who consequently did not attend.

(h)Expert Witness Fees.

(1)In General.

(A) A party desiring to depose any expert who is to be asked to express an opinion must pay the reasonable and customary hourly or daily fee for the actual time consumed in the examination of that expert by the party noticing the deposition.

(B) If any other attending party desires to question the witness, that party is responsible for the expert's fee for the actual time consumed in that party's examination.

(2)Advance Request; Balance Due.

(A) If requested by the expert before the date of the deposition, the party taking the deposition of an expert must tender the expert's fee based on the anticipated length of that party's examination of the witness.

(B) If the deposition of the expert takes longer than anticipated, any party responsible for any additional fee must pay the balance of that expert's fee within 30 days of receipt of an invoice from the expert.

(3)Preparation; Review of Transcript. Any party identifying an expert whom the party expects to call at trial is responsible for any fee charged by the expert for preparing for the deposition and reviewing the deposition transcript.

(4)Objections.

(A)Motion; Contents; Notice.If a party deems that an expert's hourly or daily fee for providing deposition testimony is unreasonable, that party may move for an order setting the compensation of that expert. This motion must be accompanied by an affidavit stating facts showing a reasonable and good faith attempt at an informal resolution of any issue presented by the motion. Notice of this motion must be given to the expert.

(B)Court Determination of Expert Fee. If the court determines that the fee demanded by the expert is unreasonable, the court must set the fee of the expert for providing deposition testimony.

(C)Sanctions. The court may impose a sanction under Rule 37 against any party who does not prevail, and in favor of any party who does prevail, on a motion to set expert witness fee, provided the prevailing party has engaged in a reasonable and good faith attempt at an informal resolution of any issues presented by the motion.

Nev. R. Civ. P. 30

Last amended effective 5/1/2014; amended effective 3/1/2019.

Advisory Committee Note 2019 Amendment

The amendments generally conform Rule 30 to FRCP 30, but retain NRCP 30(h), which governs fees associated with expert depositions. Consistent with the federal rule, Rule 30(a)(2)(A)(i) now limits the parties to 10 depositions per side absent stipulation or court order. The Nevada rule,

however, does not count depositions of custodians of records toward the 10-deposition limit per side.

The "7 hours of testimony" specified in Rule 30(d)(1) means 7 hours on the record. The time taken for convenience breaks, recess for a meal, or an adjournment under Rule 30(d)(3) does not count as deposition time.

Discussion between the deponent and counsel during a convenience break is not privileged unless counsel called the break to preserve a privilege, to enforce a limitation ordered by the court, or to present a motion under Rule 30(d)(3). After a privilege-assessment break, counsel for the deponent must place on the record: (1) that a conference took place; (2) the subject of the conference; and (3) the result of the conference, i.e., whether to assert privilege or not. Coyote Springs Inv., LLC v. Eighth Judicial Dist. Court, 131 Nev. 140, 149, 347 P.3d 267, 273 (2015).

If a deposition is recorded by audio or audiovisual means and is later transcribed, any dispute regarding the accuracy of the transcription or of multiple competing transcriptions should be resolved by the court or discovery commissioner.

Drafter's Note

2004 Amendment

Former subdivision (a) is repealed. New subdivision (a) conforms to the federal rule, as amended in 1993. It provides that leave of court is not required to take a deposition except as set forth in paragraph (2). Paragraph (2)(A) of the federal rule, which limits the number of depositions that may be taken is not included in the Nevada rule. Paragraphs (2)(B) and (C) of the federal rule are redesignated as paragraphs (2)(A) and (B) and adopted with minor modifications to reflect practice in state court.

Subdivision (b) is amended to conform to the federal rule, as amended in 1993, with some exceptions. The amendments to paragraph (1) are technical, but the 15-day minimum notice of examination is retained. Former paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) are repealed. New paragraph (2) permits the party noticing the deposition to choose the method of recording and permits recording by nonstenographic means. It is noted that the last two sentences of the first paragraph of former subdivision (b)(2) are deleted because they are redundant to Rule 26(g) and because Rule 11 no longer applies to discovery requests. New paragraph (3) permits other parties to arrange for recording by a means in addition to that selected by the person noticing the deposition. Unlike its federal counterpart, paragraph (3) of the Nevada rule requires 5 days' notice to the deponent and other parties. New paragraph (4) provides that all depositions be recorded by an officer appointed or designated under Rule 28 and includes procedures to protect the utility and integrity of nonstenographic recordings. Paragraph (6) is amended to require a subpoena to depose an organization, remove the phrase "have knowledge of" from the second sentence, and provide that the subpoena must advise a nonparty organization of its duty to designate a person who consents to testify on its behalf. Paragraph (7) is amended to permit the taking of a deposition by other remote electronic means in addition to telephonic means, but it retains telephonic deposition procedures that do not appear in the federal rule.

Subdivision (c) is amended to conform to the federal rule, as amended in 1993. The fourth sentence of the former subdivision is repealed consistent with the new provisions of subdivision (b). The other revisions are intended to reduce the number of interruptions during depositions and complement the new provisions of subdivision (d)(1).

Subdivision (d) is amended to conform to the federal rule, as amended in 1993, by adding two new paragraphs. New paragraph (1) requires that any objection during a deposition be made concisely and in a nonargumentative and nonsuggestive manner. It also prohibits instructing a deponent not to answer except in three specific circumstances. Paragraph (2) of the federal rule, as amended in 2000, limits depositions to one day of seven hours; this provision is not included in the Nevada rule. Paragraph (3) of the federal rule is redesignated and adopted as new paragraph (2) of the Nevada rule. It authorizes the court or discovery commissioner to impose sanctions when a fair examination of the deponent is impeded, delayed or otherwise frustrated. Paragraph (3) retains the provisions of the former subdivision (d) and corresponds to paragraph (4) of the federal rule.

Subdivision (e) is amended to conform to the federal rule, as amended in 1993. Under the amended provision, review of the deposition transcript by the deponent is required only if requested before the deposition is completed.

Subdivision (f) is amended to conform to the federal rule, as amended in 1980 and 1993, with the exception of paragraph (3) of the federal rule. Paragraph (1) is amended to require a written certificate from the officer accompany the record of the deposition, which is sealed and sent to the party who arranged for the transcript or recording for safekeeping. Other amendments clarify the use of originals or copies of documents as exhibits to a deposition. The first sentence in paragraph (2) is new and generally provides that the officer must retain stenographic notes or a copy of the recording of any deposition.

The amendments to subdivision (g) are technical. The rule retains in both paragraphs the word "shall" rather than "may," which is used in the federal rule. The Nevada rule also retains the good cause exception in both paragraphs, which does not appear in the federal rule.

Subdivision (h) is retained with some modifications. It has no federal counterpart. Paragraph (1) is amended to eliminate confusion concerning responsibility for travel expenses for a party's expert to attend a deposition noticed by another party.