§ 9-11-28.[Effective July 1, 2026] Persons before whom depositions may be taken; disqualification for interest; consent of parties

Anywhere in the United States or a territory subject to its dominion, a deposition may be taken before an officer authorized to administer oaths by federal law or the law of the place of examination, or before a court-appointed court reporter — but within Georgia specifically, it has to be a certified court reporter, as that term is defined in Code Section 15-14-22. Whoever presides has the power to administer the oath and take the testimony.

Depositions taken abroad follow a different track: before a secretary of embassy or legation, a consul general, consul, vice-consul, or consular agent of the United States, or before a person appointed by commission or under letters rogatory. A commission or letters rogatory issues only when necessary or convenient, on application and notice, on terms the circumstances call for. Officers may be identified by name or by descriptive title, and letters rogatory follow a standard address format directed to the appropriate judicial authority in the named country.

Subsection (c) disqualifies certain court reporters from presiding over a deposition altogether — a relative, employee, attorney, or counsel of any party, a relative or employee of that attorney or counsel, or anyone financially interested in the outcome. The one exception: a court reporter who is a relative of a party or of counsel may still preside if every party represented at the deposition explicitly consents to it on the record.