the format
[Witness last name] Dep. [page]:[line]–[line]that's the Bluebook form for court documents (Bluepages rule B17), which most US courts and firms follow. "Deposition" is abbreviated "Dep." The pinpoint is page, colon, line. the date is optional unless it's needed to tell two depositions of the same witness apart.
examples
| citing | write |
|---|---|
| one line | Doe Dep. 13:5 |
| several lines on one page | Doe Dep. 13:5–10 |
| a passage that crosses pages | Doe Dep. 45:22–46:3 |
| two separate passages | Doe Dep. 13:5–10, 27:1–4 |
| with the date | Doe Dep. 13:5–10, Jan. 15, 2024 |
| in a brief, in parentheses | (Doe Dep. 13:5–10.) |
use an en dash for ranges, and cite the narrowest span that supports the point. a judge checking your cite shouldn't have to read three pages to find it.
special cases
- two depositions of the same witness. add the date to each so the reader knows which one you mean. if a long deposition is split into volumes, give the volume too.
- a deposition from a different case. cite it with that case's name and docket number, the way you'd cite any document from another proceeding (Bluebook rule 10.8.3).
- a 30(b)(6) deposition. the organization is the deponent, so name it rather than the person who testified. practice varies; a common form is
Acme Corp. 30(b)(6) Dep. 8:2–14, with the designee named on first reference. - exhibits. cite deposition exhibits separately from the testimony, using the exhibit number assigned at the deposition.
check the local rules
many courts add their own requirements on top of the Bluebook: a specific abbreviation, an appendix of cited excerpts, or the excerpts attached as exhibits. the local rules and the judge's standing order win over any style guide. when they're silent, the format above is the safe default.
APA and Chicago
neither has its own deposition format. APA 7th edition and the Chicago Manual of Style (18th edition) both send you to the Bluebook for US legal material. in an academic paper, use the Bluebook form in the text or note, and list the transcript in your references with the case name, the witness, and the date.
why page and line numbers hold still
a page:line cite only works if everyone's copy paginates the same way. that's why certified deposition transcripts use a fixed layout: 25 numbered lines per page, set margins, and a fixed-width font. reformat the transcript and every cite in the brief breaks.
if you're working from your own recording rather than a certified transcript, the deposition format page covers producing a 25-line, line-numbered transcript you can cite internally. a transcript you make yourself isn't a certified transcript; it's a working copy for you and your team.