Proposed Amendments to Rules Governing Deposition Practice in MA State Court

January 2021

The Standing Advisory Committee on the Rules of Civil Procedure has proposed amendments to Rules 30 and 30A of the Massachusetts Rules of Civil Procedure.  The proposed amendment would impose a presumptive limit of ten depositions per side and a presumptive limit of a  1 day or seven hour limit for  each deposition.  These amendments are modeled after the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and are in keeping with the growing number of state courts that have adopted similar amendments aimed at streamlining and modernizing the rules. Under the amendments, Rule 30A, which addressed audiovisual depositions, would be repealed and key sections  of this rule integrated into Rule 30.  It is important to note, however, that certain state specific deposition requirements remain in place so it is important to review the proposed amended Rule 30 to understand the full scope of the amendments.