Commentary by Leslie Frank and Susana Oquendo:
The very first thing you must know about being served with a subpoena: NEVER IGNORE IT. You could most often be held in contempt of court; meaning, you could be charged with various penalties based on the reason for the subpoena.
A subpoena is considered to be a demand from the court for your appearance at a specified time and place. The subpoena could be for you to testify at a trial; to testify at a deposition; to provide documents; or any other reasonable request from a party in either a civil lawsuit or a criminal prosecution.
If you are questioning the reason you were served with a subpoena, you may do one of the following three things:
Call the attorney whose name appears at the end of the subpoena;
Call your attorney (if you have one); or
Carefully read the subpoena for any explanation given and show up at the time and place with the documents (if requested)
Remember: if you don’t want a warrant issued for your arrest, and have the police come knocking at your door…… DO NOT IGNORE A SUBPOENA.