What to Wear to Court & Depositions

Did you know there are rules surrounding what is considered appropriate to wear into court? There are. Seriously. There are also unspoken expectations about what you wear to a deposition. If you never have been to court, or a deposition, you may be uncertain what you should wear. Think of a deposition as a business casual work event, and a court appearance as a formal interview for a business job. Here are some attire suggestions (see also the pictures above):

Women

• wear shoes appropriate for the weather (try to limit the height of the heel)
• a dress, skirt (preferably no more than two inches above the knee) or long dress pants
• a blouse, sweater or casual dress shirt.

Men

• wear shoes with socks
• long pants (on pants with belt loops, wear a belt)
• collared shirt (tucked in) preferably with a tie, with or without a jacket.

Avoid Wearing

• no pajamas (It happens, believe it or not)
• shorts
• hats
• halter or tube top
• see-through top
• flip flops
• clothing that exposes your midriff or underwear
• ripped or torn jeans
• baggy pants that fall below your hips
• clothing with an emblem or wording that promotes illegal or inappropriate activity
• clothing that depicts or promotes violence, sex acts, illegal drug use or profanity

Don't forget to have well groomed hair, appropriate makeup and to have on clean clothes too. Before you appear in court, or go to deposition, it is likely that your attorney will remind of these tips. What you wear does make an impression on the court, the jurors and the defense team. The goal is to make a good one.

A special thank you to  our Instagram friends Trench @ Trench and Angela @ thriftypineapple for allowing us to use their photos for this blog! You can follow them at the above links. You can also follow us on Instagram @ attorneytmorton.