If you’ve got a workers’ comp or personal injury case in Missouri, there’s a good chance you’ll hear the words “medical deposition.” And if that sounds intimidating, you’re not alone. Most people don’t know what to expect until they’re thrown into it.
Here’s the short version: it’s your doctor, under oath, answering questions about your injury. It’s recorded. It’s serious. And it can have a big impact on your case.
At Cantor Injury Law, I’ve sat through hundreds of these. I know what insurance companies are fishing for, and I know how to prepare our clients and their doctors the right way. This post will walk you through what a medical deposition is, why it matters, and how we make sure the truth gets heard—clearly and without confusion.
What is A Medical Deposition?
If you’ve got a workers’ comp or injury case with us, there’s a good chance your doctor will be called in for a medical deposition. Don’t let the word scare you—it’s not a courtroom, and you won’t be on the spot. But it is serious, and it matters.
A medical deposition is where your doctor testifies under oath. A court reporter types every word. Sometimes there’s a camera. The insurance company’s lawyer gets to ask questions—about your diagnosis, treatment, and whether your injury is work-related. They’re not doing this to be friendly. They’re doing it to save the insurance company money.
I’ve been handling these depositions for decades. I know the games they play. I know the questions they ask. And I know how to prepare your doctor so the truth comes through—clean, clear, and without confusion.
Medical Deposition Case Study
On Friday, I spent the day conducting a medical deposition for an expert in a very serious injury case.
My client was working at Home Depot and using an industrial saw to cut wood when a customer bumped him. Unfortunately, it resulted in my client losing all four fingers on his hand.
As a result of his serious physical injuries, our client can no longer work and has severe pain in his hand. This pain is not simply phantom pain, but reflex sympathetic dystrophy, which is a debilitating, constant pain that also is associated with swelling and and atrophy. He also has post traumatic stress disorder and severe depression.
I was deposing the fourth psychiatrist in the case, Dr. Paul Packman, and he did an excellent job explaining the disabilities.
Since his deposition will be used for trial purposes, he was cross examined by two other lawyers but, I thought, withstood all scrutiny.
The case will be won, the only issue is how much and the varying experts disagree about the level of psychiatric disability, but I think we will prevail on the severity issue.
At the same time I was deposing the Psychiatrist, Gary was deposing an eye surgeon in Maryland for a client who lost his vision as a result of medical negligence. Gary did the work necessary to identify a renowned expert in the field, secure his opinion, file suit and then proceed.
As part of that process, he had to present the expert for deposition and fly there to meet the expert, prepare him, and have the deposition.
A successful attorney will push your case to trial, and expert depositions are part of that process. At Cantor Injury Law, we regularly take expert depositions on a variety of topics including damages, standard of care issues, products liability, etc. If you have a serious injury and need aggressive representation, call us today. We can help.
