(a)
Within the United States.
(1) In General.
Within the United States or a
territory or insular possession subject to United
States jurisdiction, a deposition must be taken
before:
(A) an officer authorized to administer oaths
either by federal law or by the law in the
place of examination; or
(B) a person appointed by the court where the
action is pending to administer oaths and
take testimony.
(2) Definition of “Officer.”
The term “officer” in Rules 30, 31 and 32 includes a person appointed
by the court under this rule or designated by the
parties under Rule 29(a).
(b) In a Foreign Country.
(1) In General.
A deposition may be taken in a
foreign country:
(A) under an applicable treaty or convention;
(B) under a letter of request, whether or not
captioned a “letter rogatory”;
(C) on notice, before a person authorized to
administer oaths either by federal law or by
the law in the place of examination; or
(D) before a person commissioned by the court
to administer any necessary oath and take
testimony.
(2) Issuing a Letter of Request or a Commission.
A letter of request, a commission, or both may be
issued:
(A) on appropriate terms after an application
and notice of it; and
(B) without a showing that taking the
deposition in another manner is
impracticable or inconvenient.
(3) Form of a Request, Notice, or Commission.
When a letter of request or any other device is
used according to a treaty or convention, it must
be captioned in the form prescribed by that
treaty or convention. A letter of request may be
addressed “To the Appropriate Authority in
[name of country].” A deposition notice or a
commission must designate by name or
descriptive title the person before whom the
deposition is to be taken.
(4) Letter of Request — Admitting Evidence.
Evidence obtained in response to a letter of
request need not be excluded merely because it is
not a verbatim transcript, because the testimony
was not taken under oath, or because of any
similar departure from the requirements for
depositions taken within the United States.
(c)
Disqualification.
A deposition must not be taken
before a person who is any party's relative, employee,
or attorney; who is related to or employed by any
party's attorney; or who is financially interested in
the action.