Part I · Rule 57: Interrogatories and Depositions · Last amended July 1, 2022 · Last verified July 22, 2026
(a) When Depositions May Be Taken.
(1) After commencement of the action, any party may take the testimony of any person, including a party, by deposition upon oral examination without leave of court, except as specified in paragraph (2) of this subdivision. The attendance of witnesses may be compelled by subpoena as provided in Rule 57.09. The attendance of a party is compelled by notice as provided in subdivision (b) of this Rule.
(2) Leave of court, granted with or without notice, must be obtained only if:
(A) 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 57.04 by the plaintiffs, or by the defendants, or by the third-party defendants;
(ii) the deponent has already been deposed in the case; or
(iii) the plaintiff seeks to take a deposition prior to the expiration of 30 days after service of the summons and petition upon any defendant, except that leave is not required if a defendant has served a notice of taking deposition or otherwise sought discovery; or
(B) the deponent is confined in prison.
(b) Notice of Examination: General Requirements; Special Notice; Production of Documents and Things; Deposition of Organization.
(1) A party desiring to take the deposition of any person upon oral examination shall give not less than seven days notice in writing to every other party to the action and to a non-party deponent. The notice shall state the time and place for taking the deposition and the name and address of each person to be examined, if known. If the name is not known, a general description sufficient to identify the person or the particular class or group to which the person belongs shall be stated. If a subpoena duces tecum is to be served on the person to be examined, the designation of the materials to be produced as set forth in the subpoena shall be attached to or included in the notice. The parties may stipulate, or the court may upon motion order, that the deposition be taken by telephone or other remote means such as videoconferencing or teleconferencing. An officer authorized to administer any oath or affirmation required can so administer the oath or affirmation through such means without being in the physical presence of the witness. Any attorney of record in the proceeding or any attorney for the deponent may participate in the deposition by telephone or other remote means, including videoconferencing or teleconferencing, but it shall be the sole responsibility of the attorney to make such arrangements as are necessary to so participate in the deposition.
(2) The court may for cause shown enlarge or shorten the time for taking the deposition.
(3) The notice to a party deponent may be accompanied by a request made in compliance with Rule 58.01 for the production of documents and tangible things at the taking of the deposition. The procedure of Rule 58.01 shall apply to the request.
(4) A party may in the notice and in a subpoena name as the deponent a public or private corporation or a partnership or association or governmental agency and describe with reasonable particularity the matters on which examination is requested. In that event, the organization so named shall designate one or more officers, directors, managing agents, or other persons who consent to testify on its behalf and may set forth, for each person designated, the matters on which the person will testify. A subpoena shall advise a non-party organization of its duty to make such a designation. The persons so designated shall testify as to matters known or reasonably available to the organization. This Rule 57.03(b)(4) does not preclude taking a deposition by any other procedure authorized in these rules.
(5) Duration. Unless otherwise stipulated or ordered by the court, a deposition shall be limited to one day of seven hours. The court may allow additional time consistent with Rule 56.01 if needed to fairly examine the deponent or if the deponent, another person, or any other circumstance impedes or delays the examination.
(6) 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.
(c) Non-stenographic Recording – Videotape. Depositions may be recorded by the use of videotape or similar methods. The recording of the deposition by videotape shall be in addition to a usual recording and transcription method unless the parties otherwise agree.
(1) If the deposition is to be recorded by videotape, every notice or subpoena for the taking of the deposition shall state that it is to be videotaped and shall state the name, address, and employer of the recording technician. If a party upon whom notice for the taking of a deposition has been served desires to have the testimony additionally recorded by other than stenographic means, that party shall serve notice on the opposing party and the witness that the proceedings are to be videotaped. Such notice must be served not less than three days prior to the date designated in the original notice for the taking of the depositions and shall state the name, address, and employer of the recording technician..
(2) Where the deposition has been recorded only by videotape and if the witness and parties do not waive signature, a written transcription of the audio shall be prepared to be submitted to the witness for signature as provided in Rule 57.03(f).
(3) The witness being deposed shall be sworn as a witness on camera by an authorized person.
(4) More than one camera may be used, either in sequence or simultaneously.
(5) The attorney for the party requesting the videotaping of the deposition shall take custody of and be responsible for the safeguarding of the videotape and shall, upon request, permit the viewing thereof by the opposing party and, if requested, shall provide a copy of the videotape at the cost of the requesting party.
(6) Unless otherwise stipulated to by the parties, the expense of videotaping is to be borne by the party utilizing it and shall not be taxed as costs.
(d) Record of Examination; Oath; Objections. The officer before whom the deposition is to be taken shall put the witness on oath or affirmation and shall personally, or by someone acting under the officer’s direction and in the officer’s presence, record the testimony of the witness. The testimony shall be taken stenographically or recorded by any other means ordered in accordance with Rule 57.03(c). If requested by one of the parties, the testimony shall be transcribed.
All objections made at the time of the examination to the qualifications of the officer taking the deposition, to the manner of taking it, to the evidence presented, to the conduct of any party, or 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, parties may serve written questions in a sealed envelope on the party taking the deposition, and that party shall transmit them to the officer before whom the deposition is to be taken, who shall propound them to the witness, and the questions and answers thereto shall be recorded.
(e) Motion to Terminate or Limit Examination. At any time during the taking of the deposition, on motion of a party or of the deponent and upon a showing that the examination is being conducted in bad faith or in such manner as unreasonably to annoy, embarrass, or oppress the deponent or party, the court in which the action is pending or a court having general jurisdiction in the place where the deposition is being taken may order the officer conducting the examination to cease forthwith from taking the deposition, or may limit the scope and manner of the taking of the deposition as provided in Rule 56.01(c). If the order made terminates the examination, it shall be resumed thereafter only upon the order of the court in which the action is pending. Upon demand of the objecting party or deponent, the taking of the deposition shall be suspended for the time necessary to make a motion for an order. The provisions of Rule 61.01(g) apply to the award of expenses incurred in relation to the motion.
(f) Submission to Witness; Changes; Signing. When the testimony is fully transcribed, the officer shall make the deposition available to the witness for examination, reading, and signing, unless such examination, reading, and signing are waived by the witness or by the parties. Any changes in form or substance that the witness desires to make shall be entered upon an errata sheet provided to the witness with a statement of the reasons given for making such changes. The answers or responses as originally given, together with the changes made and reasons given therefore, shall be considered as a part of the deposition. The deposition shall then be signed by the witness before a notary public unless the witness is ill, cannot be found, is dead, or refuses to sign. If the deposition is not signed by the time of trial, it may be used as if signed, unless, on a motion to suppress, the court holds that the reasons given for the refusal to sign requires rejection of the deposition in whole or in part.
(g) Certification, Delivery, and Filing; Exhibits; Copies.
(1) Certification and Delivery. The officer shall certify on the deposition that the witness was duly sworn by the officer and that the deposition is a true record of the testimony given by the witness. Upon payment of reasonable charges therefore, the officer shall deliver the deposition to the party who requested that the testimony be transcribed.
(2) Filing
(A) By the Officer. Upon delivery of a deposition, the officer shall file with the court a certificate showing the caption of the case, the name of the deponent, the date the deposition was taken, the name and address of the person having custody of the original deposition, and whether the charges have been paid. The officer shall not file a copy of the deposition with the court except upon court order.
(B) By a Party. A party shall not file a deposition with the court except upon specific court order or contemporaneously with a motion placing the deposition or a part thereof in issue. The court may enact local court rules requiring a party who intends to use a deposition at a hearing or trial to file that deposition with the court on or prior to the date of the hearing or trial.
(C) Return of Deposition. At the conclusion of the hearing or trial the deposition that has been filed or delivered to the court shall be returned to the party that filed or delivered the deposition.
(D) Retention of Deposition. The original deposition shall be maintained until the case is finally disposed.
(3) Exhibits. Documents and things produced for inspection during the examination of the witness shall, upon the request of a party, be marked for identification and annexed to and returned with the deposition and may be inspected and copied by any party, except that (A) the person producing the materials may substitute copies to be marked for identification if the person affords to all parties fair opportunity to verify the copies by comparison with the originals and (B) if the person producing the materials requests their return, the officer shall mark them, give each party an opportunity to inspect and copy them, and return them to the person producing them, and the materials may then be used in the same manner as if annexed to and returned with the deposition. Any party may move for an order that the original be annexed to and returned with the deposition to the court pending final disposition of the civil action.
(4) Copies. Upon request and payment of reasonable charges therefore, the officer shall furnish a copy of the deposition to any party or to the deponent.
(h) Failure to Attend or to Serve Subpoena; Expenses.
(1) If the party giving the notice of the taking of a deposition fails to attend and proceed therewith and another party attends in person or by attorney pursuant to the notice, the court may order the party giving notice to pay to such other party the reasonable expenses incurred by that other party and that other party's attorney in attending, including reasonable attorney fees.
(2) If a witness fails to appear for a deposition and the party giving the notice of the taking of the deposition has not complied with these rules to compel the attendance of the witness, the court may order the party giving the notice to pay to any party attending in person or by attorney the reasonable expenses incurred by that other party and that other party's attorney in attending, including reasonable attorney fees.
Adopted March 29, 1974, eff. Jan. 1, 1975. Amended June 1, 1993, eff. Jan. 1, 1994; Amended Sept. 28, 1993, eff. Jan. 1, 1994; Amended June 25, 2001, eff. Jan. 1, 2002. Amended June 27, 2006, eff. Jan. 1, 2007; Amended June 20, 2014, eff. January 1, 2015; Amended eff. August 28, 2019; Amended Sept. 29, 2020, eff April 1, 2021; Amended March 2, 2021, eff. September 2, 2021; Amended Oct. 26, 2021, eff. July 1, 2022.
Once a case is filed, Rule 57.03 lets any party depose any person, including another party, without asking the court first — with a few exceptions. Court permission is required when the parties have not stipulated and the deposition would push either side, or the third-party defendants, past 10 depositions total; when the deponent has already been deposed once in the case; when a plaintiff wants to depose someone before 30 days have passed since serving any defendant, unless that defendant has already sought discovery; or whenever the deponent is confined in prison.
Notice must go out in writing at least 7 days ahead, stating the time, place, and who is to be examined, with any subpoena duces tecum’s document list attached. Depositions can be taken by telephone or another remote method by stipulation or court order, and absent agreement or a court order otherwise, a deposition is capped at one day of seven hours, though the court can allow more time if the deponent or some other circumstance impedes a fair examination, and can sanction anyone who does the impeding. The rule also sets out Missouri’s version of a corporate-designee deposition: a party may name a corporation, partnership, association, or governmental agency as the deponent and describe with reasonable particularity the matters for examination, and the organization must then designate one or more officers, directors, managing agents, or other persons who consent to testify on its behalf about matters known or reasonably available to it. This is Missouri’s counterpart to a federal 30(b)(6) deposition, letting a party bind an organization to testimony on named topics without first identifying which individual will speak to them.
Depositions may be videotaped in addition to the usual stenographic record, with advance notice naming the recording technician, and multiple cameras may run in sequence or at once. The officer administers the oath, records the testimony, and notes any objections; evidence objected to still comes in subject to the objection. A court can terminate or limit a deposition conducted in bad faith or in a way that unreasonably annoys, embarrasses, or oppresses the deponent. Once transcribed, the witness reviews and can correct the transcript on an errata sheet before signing, and the officer certifies, delivers, and — except by court order or with a motion — keeps the deposition out of the court file. If a party fails to attend a deposition it noticed, or a witness fails to appear because the noticing party never properly compelled attendance, the court can order that party to pay the other side’s reasonable expenses, including attorney fees.