What is a deposition ?

At a deposition, the person appears at a place or a specified time and gives sworn testimony under oath with a court reporter present. Unlike the information recorded in the deposited papers, depositions occur during the discovery phase of personal enquiry (after the filing of a lawsuit and before the final settlement). 

The deposition process is a kind of question-and-answer session where the opposing counsel asks questions to learn about the case. The court reporter may record the testimony with a stenography machine which can create a written transcript that can be used at the trial.