Subpoena - Family Court of Western Australia

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>STEP 3‘Serving’ the Subpoena (with conduct money) and informing theother partyAs the person who requested the subpoena to be issued, you must arrange for the subpoena to bepersonally handed to the named person. You should give the named person as much notice aspossible of the hearing or trial date.At the time of service of a subpoena the following must also be served: conduct money (see below) if a subpoena for production – a copy of the brochure Subpoena – information for namedperson (served with a subpoena); and– a written notice if you seek that Rule 15.30 apply(see attachment).If necessary you should read the Court’s Service Kit as it may help you carry out service. If thesubpoena is not served personally, according to the Court’s Rules, the person you are asking theCourt to subpoena is not required to comply with the Subpoena.Additional requirements for a subpoena for production A person or organisation required by a subpoena to produce documents to the Court must begiven at least 14 days notice. In some circumstances a Registrar of the Court may givepermission for a Subpoena to be filed inside this 14 day period but generally would only dothis if there is written consent from the person named, stating that they will be able to complywith the subpoena within the shorter time period.A copy of the subpoena for production must be served on the named person and all partiesto the case and a child representative (if one has been appointed). If Rule 15.30 is to applyyou must also serve a copy of the notice and immediately file an Affidavit of Service (Form 7)to prove that this has been done.See also the specific requirements below about ‘conduct money’.Conduct money and witness feesYou are required to pay ‘conduct money’ to the person you subpoena. If you do not provide thismoney, the person is not required to comply with the subpoena. The amount to be paid is set outin Schedule 4 of the Family Law Rules. For a subpoena to give evidence or a subpoena to giveevidence and produce documents, the conduct money covers:Return travel by public transport from the person’s place of work or residence to the Court.A reasonable allowance for accommodation and meals during the estimated time of personalattendance at the hearing or trial.You must also pay witness fees for each person you subpoena to attend Court, as follows:All witnesses – $75 for each day, or part of a day, that the person is absent from their place ofemployment or residence, in order to meet the requirements of your subpoena.Expert witnesses – such further amount as agreed or the Court allows.4For a subpoena for production the person served must receive:Conduct money in a sum sufficient to meet the reasonable expenses of complying with thesubpoena. For example, the cost of identifying, copying and collating the documents required.This will be at least the minimum amount of $10 or such other sum as agreed or ordered.