Issuing a subpoena to a third party becomes more complex when the third party is located in another state. Whether you require the presence of a witness or copies of records from this third party for your case, you may need to undergo a different procedure than what you have in your own state.
This article will discuss what is needed to produce evidence with out-of-state subpoenas.
The Federal Practice
According to changes made to Rule 45 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the process of requesting subpoenas to gather evidence from another state has been streamlined.
Before these updates, an attorney was required to request a subpoena from the court where the custodian of the evidence would need to comply. The venue of the litigation was not considered.
Because of the amendments to the Rule, subpoenas can now be issued from the court where the lawsuit is pending. This court is referred to as the “issuing court.” The third party would comply with another court, which is referred to as the “compliance court.”
The third party can file their motions with the compliance court if they object to complying with the subpoena. These motions will be transferred by the compliance court to the issuing court for resolution. Once a resolution has been reached, the compliance court enforces the order from the issuing court.
What States Do
Generally, a third party is not required to provide records to comply with a subpoena issued in another state or appear for deposition in another state. This is why the litigant needs to request assistance from the court with jurisdiction over the third party concerned. Also, states generally have their own procedure when issuing subpoenas for out-of-state cases.
In New York, the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act or UIDDA has been adopted. To obtain records from New York for an out-of-state case, the lawyer must submit an out-of-state subpoena to the county clerk in the county where the evidence or witness is located. The county clerk will then issue a local subpoena for service to the person the original, out-of-state subpoena is directed to.
For Corporations:
When a litigant needs to depose a corporation, a subpoena must be issued by the court whose jurisdiction covers where that corporation is domiciled. This can be where the corporation has its headquarters or in a state where that corporation was organized as a corporate entity. In most cases, these locations are one and the same.
If a corporation is domiciled in two states, the subpoena can be issued in either jurisdiction.
For Criminal Cases:
Because of the Attendance of Out-of-State Witnesses Act (Uniform Act), an attorney who needs an out-of-state witness to testify in a criminal case is no longer required to follow the procedure for civil cases. The Uniform Act gives states the power to compel their residents to testify in a criminal case in another state.
Conclusion
Requesting to subpoena an out-of-state third party requires an understanding of both federal laws and the procedure in that specific state. This knowledge is essential for attorneys and litigants who want to pursue evidence located in another state.
Employing the services of professional process servers makes this process faster and easier. It also eliminates the need for the back-and-forth with the parties involved as well as ensures the timely, accurate, and documented service of subpoenas. For help with filing and serving subpoenas anywhere in the United States, get in touch with the Serve Index LLC today.
