A subpoena is basically a request to appear in court or produce specific documents that will support a pending case. When a person is subpoenaed it is a command from the court that allows the parties involved in a case to conduct discovery. Discovery takes place prior to a trial; the parties are allowed to gather meaningful information that in turn can be used by the attorney to develop a strategy to employ during the trial stage.
What is a subpoena?
The objective of a deposition is to bring to light any information that a witness may have. During the deposition process the legal teams for the plaintiff and the defendant will be given the opportunity to question the witness to unearth facts that can prove to be extremely important when the cases gets to trial. With all parties being aware of the facts there is little chance of a surprise during the course of the trial. This is great when the subpoena can be given to a deponent living in the same jurisdiction as the court; it is not so easy when the deponent resides outside the jurisdiction of the court, although the adoption of the Uniform Depositions and Discovery Act has made it easier to satisfy a foreign deposition subpoena.
The United States is a large country and the citizens can move from one state to another at will. This used to pose a problem when a witness to a legal action lived in a state other than where the trail was taking place.
In the past getting a foreign deposition subpoena was difficult but since the promulgation of the Uniform Depositions and Discovery Act it is much easier and far more convenient to undertake discovery in a different state. In the past it was necessary for the individual that was summoned to actually appear in the out of state venue, now an out of state law firm can seek assistance from a local law firm to conduct the deposition and to handle any supporting documents that are a result of the subpoena.
