A Pizza in 30 Minutes Perhaps, but not a Legal Video Deposition.

Technology brings so much to our field of vision. Consumer goods bought with point click and ship arrive in some cases the same day, (Amazon has one-day delivery now in Houston), a ride to the airport is a few screen strokes away, and of course, hot pizza is almost essentially around the corner.

Providing legal videography services in Houston, Texas brings me face to face once and a while with popup and/or ASAP assignments. Aiming to please my clients, I will try to accommodate last minute assignments but I'm first to admit, it may not be a practice I will continue to follow.

First, let's take a look at the difference between a popup and an ASAP rush assignment. To my right mind the definition of a popup is when I get a call or text the night before an assignment or a request for my services several hours in advance on the same day. A request to cover a deposition received at 9 or 10 AM for a 2PM start is clearly a popup. If the calendar is clear, I should be able to accommodate the job with plenty of time to spare. So far, life is good.

Treacherous waters emerge when the person on the other side of the phone or text asks. "How soon can you get to XYZ?" This is never good and I liken it the same horror I've felt a few times in my life when the postman had left a notice of registered mail. Even when he was alive, it was never a letter from Ed McMahon telling me I had won the Publishers Clearinghouse Sweepstakes.

I acquiesced to such a request just last week. After accepting the challenge and presenting the client with a number of disclaimers, i.e. traffic and city congestion issues, I provided a target time of when I'd be ready to perform the first read on.

My first mistake; I didn't clearly communicate that the target time would only be possible if I left the home office at THAT moment.

As it turned out I had to wait almost 30 additional minutes for the final go ahead. When the call came in, I was out the driveway in less than two minutes but started out being behind.

With 30 windshield minutes ahead of me, I will admit, I exceeded the speed limit a few times which in reality only used more fuel and may have picked up a minute or two at most. The risk wasn't worth it. If I had been stopped, I'd be looking at higher insurance rates, a traffic fine and the embarrassment of sitting on the roadway as the officer processed the summons. Fortunately, I never met up with law enforcement.

I did however, arrive in the vicinity of the deposition location to find a full parking garage, road and sidewalk construction and of course, a full police presence as a suspect accused of planning a terrorist attack was having his first face to face with a judge. A perfect storm of things which slowed me down.

As I made my way to the shooting location I was immediately met by security personnel who politely asked I enter through the loading area. This caused a small but very manageable delay.

When I eventually entered the office suite I was met with not a hello but "they couldn't wait." This was followed by awkward silence so I said "thank you" and left.

So what did I learn here?

There are non-negotiable standards or requirements that need to be part of every assignment

Have you ever been in an airport waiting area where fellow passengers are angry at an airline's decision NOT to fly in bad weather? How can you get upset with that? It's for your own safety. They have conditions that must be met before a plane can go in the air.

Well, so do I in Legal Video. I need time to navigate the unknowns of working in one of the largest metropolitan areas of the country. Potential construction and building delays are for me to calculate up front which is why I always leave at least three hours of time before an assignment. I have a Kindle, Iphone, and all sorts of things to keep me busy and as a result I'm never late. But that's when I am control of the schedule.

Back to "how fast can you get….." This is a time bomb. By trying to help there is the potential to get a lot of people angry along the way. Perhaps the next time it happens I'll suggest they order a pizza. I know I can't be alone on this issue. Looking forward to your thoughts

One last thought. A sign posted on the video switcher many years ago at a television studio in Washington DC read "Your failure to plan is not my emergency." Not sure why that just popped into my head.

ARG Legal Video provides video deposition services in Houston Texas. Whenever you need a Legal Videographer in Houston, Texas you can count on us. We're always on-time, technically proficient and easy to work with. We provide our services to a number of national legal support companies, court reporting and law firms of all sizes. Yes, we can travel if necessary. Please visit our website at www.arg-legalvideo.com