Section R20-5-820. Witnesses’ Oral Deposition; Out-of-State

A.      After a request for hearing is filed with the Commission, any party desiring to take the oral deposition of any other party or witness residing without the state of Arizona shall file with the hearing officer, in duplicate, a request for permission to take the deposition of such witness or witnesses. Such request shall show the name and address of such witness or witnesses and set forth the reason why said witness or witnesses’ testimony is necessary for an adjudication of the issue. Copies of such request shall be served upon each party by the party requesting permission to take the deposition. If no objection to the request for permission to take the deposition is filed as provided in subsection (B) hereof, the hearing officer may, within 10 days,

in his discretion, grant or deny the permission to take the depo- sition. If the hearing officer permits the taking of the deposi- tion, the party may proceed in the manner provided by and subject to the limitations of subsections (A), (D), (E), and (F).

B.       If any party has any objections to the taking of the oral deposi- tion of the party or witness, he shall file with the hearing offi- cer and serve on all other parties written objections thereto setting forth the basis for the opposition to the deposition. Such objection shall be filed with the hearing officer within five days after the request to take the deposition is served.

C.      If objections to the taking of the oral deposition are filed with the hearing officer as provided in subsection (B) hereof, the hearing officer shall rule on the objections within five days after the filing of the objections. The taking of the oral deposi- tion shall be held in abeyance pending the ruling of the hearing officer. The hearing officer shall either order the deposition to proceed, order that the deposition not be taken, or enter such other protective order as may be appropriate. If the hearing officer orders that the deposition proceed, the party may pro- ceed to take the deposition in the manner provided by and sub- ject to the limitation of R20-5-819, subsections (A), (D), (E), and (F).

D.      Any deposition taken pursuant to the provisions of this rule shall be filed with the Commission at least five days prior to the hearing date or any scheduled hearing and may be admitted into evidence. If the deposition is not filed within the time pre- scribed herein, it shall not be considered for any purpose except by stipulation of all interested parties, and then only with the concurrence of the hearing officer.

Historical Note

Adopted effective March 20, 1975 (Supp. 75-1). R20-5-

820  recodified from R4-13-820 (Supp. 95-1).