# Are potential witnesses required to answer lawyer's questions pre-trial?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-potential-witnesses-required-to-answer-lawyers-questions-pre-trial/301159>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 26, 2005, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-potential-witnesses-required-to-answer-lawyers-questions-pre-trial/301159 "2005-04-26T15:10:53Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-potential-witnesses-required-to-answer-lawyers-questions-pre-trial/301159/21 "2005-04-29T13:56:43Z")

</div>

> [@ralph124c](#):
>
> I stuill don’t see why I should not get paid for testifying…the lawyer makes big buck, the judge gets paid…why is MY time worth nothing? I think I should be paid for my trouble-I don’t see why that would affect the quality of my testimony. To my mind, it would be WORTH MORE, as opposed to somebodie’s statements off the street.

FWIW, when I brought up the whole subject of being paid by counsel, I _did not_ mean for the purposes of testifying if it were to come to that (civic duty and the interest of justice and all).

I was saying that you should have made counsel pay you _just to talk_ to them. If they’re imposing on your time while they’re charging their client, then you, too, charge the attorney (who then charges his client). I’m not trying to promote jealousy of lawyer hourly rates, nor undermine the justice system, or anything like that. You wanted both of these bozos to grow up. So, make some money off of them. If the lawyer pays you, _he’s_ not taking the hit. Your idiot neighbors are.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-potential-witnesses-required-to-answer-lawyers-questions-pre-trial/301159/22 "2005-04-29T14:39:42Z")

</div>

> [@Cliffy](#):
>
> we are not motivated solely by civic responsibility any more than you are when you go to work.
> 
> –Cliffy

And we miss a day of work when we testify. Sorry, but while civic responsibility enters the equation, it is still an equation.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-potential-witnesses-required-to-answer-lawyers-questions-pre-trial/301159/23 "2005-04-29T14:52:16Z")

</div>

I mean no hostility in the above post. I value my lawyer and the services he provides me, however I feel that “civic responsibility” only goes so far.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-potential-witnesses-required-to-answer-lawyers-questions-pre-trial/301159.md?page=1)