Subpoenas

What are Subpoenas?

Subpoenas are court commands which “cause a witness to appear and give testimony, commanding him to lay aside all pretenses and excuses, and appear before a court or magistrate therein named at a time therein mentioned to testify for the party named under a penalty therein mentioned.” (Black’s Law Dictionary 1595. 4th Ed. Rev. 1968)

Subpoenas may be issued for testimony or the production of documents, but a subpoena usually refers to the order which compels a person to testify at trial. A subpoena for that specific purpose can be referred to as a subpoena ad tesificandum, while subpoenas for other purposes have different names. Subpoenas may entail a description of the subject which the person is being called to testify on, and the time and place in which that person must appear in court.

When a person receives a subpoena, appearing in court is not a voluntary process. The subpoena serves as a compulsory command, and the recipient of a subpoena is legally obligated to do as instructed. If a person receives a subpoena and fails to appear in court or testimony, they run the risk of being found in contempt of court. That could result in prison time. The only exception is in the case of testimony, as a person can not be forced to testify privileged information.