Short answer. You may still object at the trial or hearing itself — objections to receiving all or part of a deposition in evidence may be made at that later point, for any reason that would require excluding the evidence had the witness been present in court and testifying live.

What the law says

objections may be made at the trial or hearing to receiving in evidence any deposition or part thereof for any reason which would require the exclusion of the evidence if the witness were then present and testifying.

Rule 23, Section 6 — Objections to admissibility. Read the full provision →

Objections at the point of use, not just at the taking

The rule allows objections to be made at the trial or hearing itself whenever a party actually seeks to receive a deposition, or some part of it, into evidence at that stage. This represents a genuinely separate opportunity to object, distinct from whatever may or may not have happened, or been preserved, back at the earlier time the deposition itself was originally taken.

The standard for what counts as a valid objection

The scope of what counts as a proper objection here is tied directly to a specific, familiar standard: any reason which would require the exclusion of the evidence if the witness were then present and testifying live in court. In other words, the very same grounds that would justify excluding a witness's live testimony can equally be raised against a deposition being offered in its place at trial.

Why this trial-stage opportunity matters

Because the deposition is essentially being offered here as a substitute for, or a supplement to, live testimony, it naturally makes sense that the very same evidentiary objections already available against live testimony remain fully available at the specific point the deposition is actually introduced — a party is therefore not stuck relying solely on whatever happened during the earlier deposition session as their only real chance to object to its content.

How this fits with the deposition process overall

This provision works closely alongside the rest of this Rule's overall structure — depositions are taken under a fairly broad scope of examination, but that breadth allowed at the taking stage does not mean everything captured within a deposition automatically becomes admissible later; the trial or hearing stage remains the genuine checkpoint where evidentiary objections to its actual use are properly and formally raised. Framing the objection this way keeps a party from having to guess, at the deposition itself, every evidentiary fight that might later matter, since the same grounds that would bar live testimony remain available once the deposition is actually offered at trial.

What this trial-stage right does not cover

This trial-stage objection right binds both sides equally, whichever party seeks to introduce the deposition into evidence; the rule speaks only to objections against the deposition's use as evidence at trial, and it does not itself address whatever separate objections a party may have raised, or failed to raise, about the manner in which the deposition was originally taken. Nor does it decide, on its own, whether the deposition testimony is credible or persuasive — that weighing remains for the court once the evidentiary objection itself has been resolved.

Related provisions

Note. Statute text quoted on this page is reproduced from the official enactment and is linked to the full provision. The explanation around it is general legal information from Vivas & Nobles Law Office, not legal advice. Whether it applies to your situation depends on facts only a lawyer reviewing them can assess.