Things left unsaid

[Kyung]

So I usually put (No audible response.) when the witness nods or shakes their head to a question.

But recently I had to use (No response). The attorney would ask the question. The witness heard the question, but he would just stare at the attorney. (Can you say hostile witness?) One of the most uncomfortable depos I've been at in years. Also made me want to give the deponent a swift kick in the pants for being childish

Different witness, I don't know if he wasn't bright or was acting not-so-bright, but the attorney would ask a question, and he would just stare at the attorney. Then the attorney would start a new question.. I didn't use no response in that case bec his response wasn't no response, he just didn't understand. Hope that made sense.

Anyhow, just two ways of handling unspoken answers.

[Quyen]

I usually don't interpret the witness's actions. I've always used [Witness nodding his/her head.] or [Witness shaking his/her head.]
That's not indicating an affirmative or a negative response, but it's implicit. If it ever strikes my fancy, I'll ask, "Is that a yes?" or "Is that a no?"

If the attorney asks a question and the witness stares blankly back or if the attorney just asks another or a new question, then I use "A [No response.]"