Sample deposition questions for plaintiffs follow a predictable arc: who you are, what happened, what injuries and treatment followed, what it cost you, and how your life has changed. Opposing counsel wants a sworn, locked-in version of your story that can be used against you at trial or in settlement talks. The transcript carries the same weight as courtroom testimony, so a surprise question that produces a sloppy answer can haunt the rest of your case. Knowing the categories in advance is the best protection you have.
Background and History Questions
Every deposition opens with foundational questions. Full legal name, date of birth, current address, and where you’ve lived over roughly the past decade. These answers get cross-checked against other records in the case, so inconsistencies stand out quickly.
Employment questions go deep. Expect to be asked your job title, your supervisor’s name, your specific duties, your hourly rate or salary, and any other positions you’ve held during the relevant period. If you’re claiming lost earning capacity, the defense needs a clear picture of what you were capable of earning before the incident.
Discovery under the federal rules reaches any nonprivileged information relevant to a claim or defense, as long as it’s proportional to the needs of the case.1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 26 – Duty to Disclose; General Provisions Governing Discovery That reach means you should expect questions about prior lawsuits you’ve filed, previous insurance claims, and any workers’ compensation history. The defense is hunting for a pattern or for overlapping claims.
Criminal history comes up too. Convictions for crimes punishable by more than a year of imprisonment, and any conviction involving dishonesty or false statements, can be used to challenge your credibility as a witness. A general 10-year limit applies to older convictions, after which the evidence is admissible only if its probative value substantially outweighs the prejudice, but the defense will still ask about them during the deposition itself.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Evidence Rule 609 – Impeachment by Evidence of a Criminal Conviction
Social Media
Expect questions about which platforms you use, your usernames, and whether you’ve posted anything about the incident or your injuries. Privacy settings don’t shield your content from discovery. Courts routinely allow defense attorneys to obtain private posts, photos, and even direct messages when they’re relevant to your claims, particularly if you’re asserting that your physical abilities or lifestyle have been diminished.
Pre-accident posts matter as much as post-accident ones. Photos of you hiking, playing sports, or traveling before the incident get compared to what you say you can no longer do. Assume every post, check-in, and photo you’ve ever shared is potentially discoverable.
Reconstructing the Incident
The core of the deposition is a minute-by-minute reconstruction. Counsel will start well before the event itself: where you were coming from, where you were going, the route you took. Environmental details get real attention. Weather, lighting, road or floor conditions, visibility, anything that might have obstructed your view.
Then come the sensory questions. What exactly did you see, hear, and feel in the moments leading up to and immediately after the event? In a vehicle collision, expect questions about your speed, the other vehicle’s speed, the position of traffic signals, and any evasive action you took. In a premises liability case, you’ll be asked whether you noticed warning signs, wet floor markers, or uneven surfaces before you fell. In a contract dispute, you may be asked to recall specific words spoken during a meeting or phone call.
You’ll also be asked to identify photographs, diagrams, or maps of the scene. Once you confirm on the record that a photograph accurately depicts the scene, you can’t credibly contradict it later. Describe only what you actually remember. If a detail in a photo doesn’t match your recollection, say so.
Post-incident questions close out this section. Who arrived first? What did you tell emergency responders? Did you say anything to bystanders? Anything you told a paramedic or police officer is almost certainly documented, and the defense already has those records. Your answers have to be consistent with them.
Medical Treatment and Prior Conditions
The medical portion opens with your first symptoms and when you noticed them. You’ll be asked to name every provider you’ve seen in connection with your injuries: emergency room doctors, specialists, physical therapists, chiropractors, and mental health professionals. Have names and addresses ready.
Expect detailed questions about diagnostic imaging, test results, prescribed medications, surgical procedures, and the frequency of ongoing treatment. The defense will want to know whether your doctor has placed restrictions on your activities and what your current treatment plan looks like going forward.
Pre-existing conditions are where the defense digs hardest. You’ll be asked about prior injuries, chronic conditions, and any treatment you received before the incident. Old sports injuries, prior car accidents, arthritis, back problems. The argument the defense is building is that your current complaints aren’t new. Separating what the incident caused from what was already there is one of the most contested questions in personal injury litigation, so your answers carry serious weight.
Mental Health
If your lawsuit includes a claim for emotional distress, anxiety, or depression, you’ve likely opened the door to questions about your mental health history. In many jurisdictions, claiming emotional harm as part of your damages waives the therapist-patient privilege for records tied to that condition. Expect questions about prior therapy, psychiatric medications, and any diagnoses that predate the incident.
This catches plaintiffs off guard. Years of unrelated therapy records can suddenly become discoverable because you put your mental state at issue. Talk this trade-off through with your attorney before the deposition.
Lost Income and Out-of-Pocket Costs
Quantifying financial harm requires precise answers backed by records. You’ll be asked your exact hourly rate or salary, total hours missed from work, and whether you’ve returned to full duty or remain on restricted hours. Tax returns and W-2 forms are standard evidence for lost income, so have several years’ worth organized. If your earning capacity has been permanently reduced, expect questions about what work you can still perform and what you’ve done to find alternative employment.
Out-of-pocket expenses get their own line of questioning. Repair estimates or invoices for damaged property, every medical co-pay and deductible, the cost of prescriptions and equipment like braces or crutches, and expenses for services you now need but didn’t before, such as house cleaning or child care. Every dollar you claim should be supported by a receipt or invoice. Undocumented costs are easy targets.
How the Injury Has Changed Your Daily Life
The last substantive category explores how your everyday existence has shifted. Counsel will walk through activities of daily living. Can you dress yourself? Cook meals? Drive? Carry groceries? Climb stairs? The specificity gets granular. How far can you walk before the pain stops you? How much can you lift? Can you sit through a full workday without lying down?
Social and recreational losses get equal attention. If you played in a softball league, fished every weekend, or coached your kid’s soccer team, you’ll be asked why you stopped and whether you’ve tried to return. Relationship questions are common. Has the injury created tension with your spouse? Have you missed family events? Have you withdrawn from friendships? Specific examples carry far more weight than vague assertions. “I missed my daughter’s dance recital in March because I couldn’t sit in the auditorium for two hours” lands harder than “my social life has suffered.”
How to Answer
The most common mistake plaintiffs make is volunteering information nobody asked for. Open-ended prompts like “Tell me about that day” are designed to get you talking freely, and the more you talk, the more material the defense has. Answer the question that was asked, then stop. If counsel wants more, they’ll ask a follow-up.
Guessing is the second biggest trap. If you don’t remember whether the traffic light was green or red, say so. Estimating a detail you’re unsure about creates a sworn answer that can be compared to other evidence. When the police report says one thing and your testimony says another, the jury notices. “I’m not sure” protects you far more than a confident guess that turns out wrong.
Watch for compound questions that bundle two or more inquiries into one sentence. “Did you see the puddle on the floor, and was the lighting adequate?” needs two separate answers. Ask the attorney to break it apart. You have every right to request clarification on any question you don’t fully understand, and pausing to think before answering is smart, not suspicious. Repeating the question silently to yourself before responding keeps you focused on what was actually asked.
Your demeanor matters as much as your words, especially on video. Losing your temper, being evasive, or sounding rehearsed all hurt your credibility. Counsel may test your patience deliberately. Staying calm and straightforward is the most effective strategy, even when questions feel intrusive or repetitive.
What You Can and Can’t Refuse to Answer
You’re not defenseless during a deposition. Federal rules cap a deposition at one day of seven hours unless the court orders otherwise or the parties agree to a different limit.3Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 30 – Depositions by Oral Examination That clock runs on actual questioning time, not breaks.
Objections work differently than at trial. Your attorney may object to the form of a question, but in most situations you still have to answer. The objection is noted on the record for a judge to rule on later. There are only three situations where your attorney can instruct you not to answer at all: to preserve a legal privilege such as attorney-client communications, to enforce a limitation the court has already imposed, or to present a motion to terminate the deposition because it’s being conducted in bad faith or in a manner designed to harass you.3Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 30 – Depositions by Oral Examination
You can request breaks for water, the restroom, or to collect yourself. Rules about consulting with your attorney during breaks vary by jurisdiction. Some courts prohibit attorney-client conferences while a question is pending, and some impose broader restrictions during the entire deposition. Violating those rules can trigger sanctions or waive privilege over whatever was discussed. Ask your attorney before the deposition what rules apply in your case.
What Happens If You Don’t Show Up or You Lie
Skipping your deposition or refusing to answer questions carries real consequences. If you fail to appear after receiving proper notice, the court can impose sanctions that include treating disputed facts as established in the defense’s favor, barring you from presenting certain evidence, striking portions of your complaint, or dismissing your case entirely. The court must also require you or your attorney to pay the reasonable expenses the other side incurred because of your failure to appear, including attorney’s fees, unless the failure was substantially justified.4Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 37 – Failure to Make Disclosures or to Cooperate in Discovery
Lying under oath is worse. Federal perjury carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1621 – Perjury Generally Perjury prosecutions arising from civil depositions are uncommon in practice, but the immediate damage is just as severe. If the defense catches you in a lie, your credibility with the jury is destroyed, and credibility is what funds every damage claim you’re making. When you don’t know the answer, say “I don’t know” or “I don’t recall.” Both are perfectly acceptable as long as they’re true.