[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 22, Volume 1]

[Revised as of April 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 22CFR92.55]



[Page 373-374]

 

                       TITLE 22--FOREIGN RELATIONS

 

                     CHAPTER I--DEPARTMENT OF STATE

 

PART 92_NOTARIAL AND RELATED SERVICES--Table of Contents

 

Sec.  92.55  Consular authority and responsibility for taking depositions.



    (a) Requests to take depositions or designations to execute 

commissions to take depositions. Any United States notarizing officer 

may be requested to take a deposition on notice, or designated to 

execute a commission to take depositions. A commission or notice should, 

if possible, identify the officer who is to take depositions by his 

official title only in the following manner: ``Any notarizing officer of 

the United States of America at (name of locality)''. The notarizing 

officer responsible for the performance of notarial acts at a post 

should act on a request to take a deposition on notice, or should 

execute the commission, when the documents are drawn in this manner, 

provided local law does not preclude such action. However, when the 

officer (or officers) is designated by name as well as by title, only 

the officer (or officers) so designated may take the depositions. In 

either instance, the officer must be a disinterested party. Rule 28(c) 

of the Rules of Civil Procedure for the district courts of the United 

States prohibits the taking of a deposition before a person who is a 

relative, employee, attorney or counsel of any of the parties, or who is 

a relative or employee of such attorney or counsel, or who is 

financially interested in the action.

    (b) Authority in Federal law. The authority for the taking of 

depositions, charging the appropriate fees, and imposing the penalty for 

giving false evidence is generally set forth in 22 U.S.C. 4215 and 4221. 

The taking of depositions for federal courts of the United States is 

further governed by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. For the 

provisions of law which govern particularly the taking of depositions to 

prove the



[[Page 374]]



genuineness of foreign documents which it is desired to introduce in 

evidence in any criminal action or proceeding is a United States federal 

court, see 18 U.S.C. 3491 through 3496.

    (c) Procedure where laws of the foreign country do not permit the 

taking of depositions. In countries where the right to take depositions 

is not secured by treaty, notarizing officers may take depositions only 

if the laws or authorities of the national government will permit them 

to do so. Notarizing officers in countries where the taking of 

depositions is not permitted who receive notices or commissions for 

taking depositions should return the documents to the parties from whom 

they are received explaining why they are returning them, and indicating 

what other method or methods may be available for obtaining the 

depositions, whether by letters rogatory or otherwise.



[60 FR 51722, Oct. 3, 1995]