Deposition

1. The act of depositing or deposing; the act of laying down or thrown down; precipitation.
2. The act of bringing before the mind; presentation.
3. The act of setting aside a sovereign or a public officer; deprivation of authority and dignity; displacement; removal.
4. That which is deposited; matter laid or thrown down; sediment; alluvial matter; as, banks are sometimes depositions of alluvial matter.
5. An opinion, example, or statement, laid down or asserted; a declaration.
6. (Law) The act of laying down one's testimony in writing; also, testimony laid or taken down in writing, under oath or affirmation, before some competent officer, and in reply to interrogatories and cross-interrogatories.

A deposition differs from an abdication, an abdication being voluntary, and a deposition compulsory.