- interrogatories
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noun
demands, inquiries, pretrial inquiries, questioning, questions, written requests for information
Burton's Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006
- interrogatories
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n.During discovery before trial, written questions about the case presented by one party to the opposing party that must be answered under oath and returned to the questioning party.
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
- interrogatories
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questions put to a person. The most usually encountered sense is of questions put in writing to a litigant or witness to be answered on oath. The purpose is to limit the scope of the inquiry.
Collins dictionary of law. W. J. Stewart. 2001.
- interrogatories
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Written questions sent by one party to another as part of the pretrial investigation process, called "discovery." Interrogatories must be answered in writing under oath or under penalty of perjury within a specified time (such as 30 days). Lawyers can write their own sets of questions, or can use form interrogatories designed for the most common types of lawsuits.Category: Accidents & InjuriesCategory: Representing Yourself in CourtCategory: Small Claims Court & Lawsuits
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
- interrogatories
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Written questions submitted to a party from his or her adversary to ascertain answers that are prepared in writing and signed under oath and that have relevance to the issues in a lawsuit.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
- interrogatories
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I
Written questions submitted to a party from his or her adversary to ascertain answers that are prepared in writing and signed under oath and that have relevance to the issues in a lawsuit.II A set or series of written questions propounded to a party, witness, or other person having information or interest in a case; a discovery device.
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
- interrogatories
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n.a set of written questions to a party to a lawsuit asked by the opposing party as part of the pre-trial discovery process. These questions must be answered in writing under oath or under penalty of perjury within a specified time (such as 30 days). Several states ask basic "form" interrogatories on a printed form, with an allowance for "supplemental" interrogatories specifically relevant to the lawsuit. Normal practice is for the lawyers to prepare the questions and for the answering party to have help from his/her/its attorney in understanding the meaning (sometimes hidden) of the questions and to avoid wording in his/her answers which could be interpreted against the party answering. Objections as to relevancy or clarity may be raised either at the time the interrogatories are answered or when they are used in trial. Most states limit the number of interrogatories that may be asked without the court's permission to keep the questions from being a means of oppression rather than a source of information. While useful in getting basic information, they are much easier to ask than answer and are often intentionally burdensome. In addition the parties may request depositions (pre-trial questioning in front of a court reporter) or send "requests for admissions" which must be answered in writing.
Law dictionary. EdwART. 2013.