RULE 45. SUBPOENA
(a) Form; Issuance
(1) Every subpoena must
(A) state the title of the action, the name of the court in which it is filed, and its civil action number; and
(B) command each person to whom it is directed to attend and give testimony or to produce and permit inspection and copying of designated books, documents or tangible things in the possession, custody or control of that person, or upon order of the court for good cause shown, to permit inspection of premises, at a time and place therein specified. A copy of any court order must be attached to the subpoena.
A command to produce evidence or to permit inspection may be joined with a command to appear at a trial or hearing or at a deposition, or may be issued separately.
(2) A subpoena must be issued by the clerk under the seal of the court or by an attorney for a party to the action or special proceeding. The subpoena must be issued in the name of the court for the county in which the action isfiledvenued. If issued by the clerk, it must be issued signed and sealed but otherwise blank, and the party requesting the subpoena shall complete it before service. If issued by an attorney for a party, the subpoena must be subscribed in the name of the attorney together with the attorney's office address and must identify the party for whom the attorney appears.
(3) A subpoena may be issued by the clerk, under seal of the court, to an attorney representing a party in a civil action pending in another state upon filing proof of service of notice under subdivision (b)(2), or to a party in a civil action pending in another state upon filing a letter of request from a foreign court. The subpoena must be issued in the name of the court for the county where the subpoena will be served. The subpoena may be used and discovery obtained within this state in the same manner and subject to the same conditions and limitations as if the action were pending within this state. Any dispute regarding the subpoena, or discovery demanded, needing judicial involvement must be submitted to the court for the county where the subpoena issued.
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EXPLANATORY NOTE
Rule 45 was amended, effective July 1, 1981; January 1, 1988; January 1, 1995; March 1, 1997; _____________________.
Rule 45 was revised, effective January 1, 1995, in response to the 1991 federal revision. Significant changes to North Dakota's rule include the following: (1) An action must be filed before a subpoena may issue; (2) A subpoena may compel a non-party to produce evidence independent of any deposition; (3) A subpoena may compel the inspection of premises in the possession of a non-party upon order of the court for good cause shown; and (4) Notice must be printed on a subpoena advising of the right to object when pretrial or prehearing production or inspection is commanded. The scope of discovery under Rule 26 is not intended to be altered by the revision.
The _______ amendment is a technical amendment and no substantive change is intended.
SOURCES: Procedure Committee Minutes of ____________________; January 25-26, 1996, page 20; January 27-28, 1994, pages 11-16; April 29-30, 1993, pages 4-8, 18-20; January 28-29, 1993, pages 2-7; May 21-22, 1987, page 3; February 19-20, 1987, pages 3-4; October 30-31, 1980, pages 26-29; November 29-30, 1979, page 12; Rule 45, FRCivP.
STATUTES AFFECTED:
SUPERSEDED: Sections 31-0113, 31-0120, 31-0121 31-0302, 31-0303, 31-0305, 31-0306, 31-0310, 31-0311, 31-0312, 31-0314, NDRC 1943; Section 31-05-22, NDCC.
CROSS REFERENCE: Rules 26 (General Provisions Governing Discovery), 30 (Depositions Upon Oral Examination), and 31 (Depositions of Witnesses Upon Written Questions), NDRCivP; Rule 17 (Subpoena) NDRCrimP.