Under Washington’s subpoena rules, a properly served subpoena is a court order in everything but name: you must appear, testify, or produce documents as commanded, and ignoring it can bring contempt penalties of up to $2,000 per day, a $5,000 fine, or as much as 364 days in jail. You do have options for challenging one, but they run on tight deadlines, and simply not showing up is the worst possible response.
When a Subpoena Is Valid
Superior Court Civil Rule 45 lets any attorney of record in a pending case issue and sign a subpoena, subject to the fee-tendering requirements in RCW 5.56.010.1Washington Courts. Rule 45 – Subpoena No judge signs off in advance. A party without an attorney who needs a witness from outside the county or more than twenty miles away can apply ex parte, and a judge, commissioner, referee, or clerk can issue the subpoena.2Washington State Legislature. RCW 5.56.010 When Witnesses Must Attend – Fees and Allowances Certain agencies, including the Washington State Human Rights Commission and the Department of Labor & Industries, have independent subpoena authority within their statutory scope.
Service
A subpoena is only enforceable if it was properly served. CR 45 allows two methods: handing a copy directly to the named person, or leaving a copy at that person’s home with someone of suitable age and discretion who lives there.1Washington Courts. Rule 45 – Subpoena Substitute service at a residence is allowed, which catches people off guard. Mailing alone is not sufficient.
Any suitable person over 18 can deliver the subpoena. When service is made by anyone other than a law enforcement officer authorized to serve process, proof of service must be documented through an affidavit describing when, where, and how it was delivered.3Washington Courts. Rule 45 – Superior Court Civil Rule 45 – Subpoena Sloppy documentation creates openings to challenge the subpoena’s validity.
The subpoena must also allow a reasonable time to comply. CR 45 does not set a specific minimum number of days for an appearance, but courts will quash a subpoena that does not give the recipient enough time to prepare.
Witness Fees
Washington builds a financial safeguard into service that many people overlook. Under RCW 5.56.010, a witness generally cannot be compelled to attend unless one day’s attendance fee plus round-trip travel costs has been paid or tendered at the time of service.2Washington State Legislature. RCW 5.56.010 When Witnesses Must Attend – Fees and Allowances The specific fee and mileage amounts come from RCW 2.40.020.3Washington Courts. Rule 45 – Superior Court Civil Rule 45 – Subpoena
If you live within the same county as the court, or within twenty miles of it, the fee must be tendered only if you demand it at the time of service. If you live farther away, the issuing party first has to apply to the court, which fixes an allowance for meals, lodging, and travel; those amounts must be endorsed on the subpoena and tendered when it is served.2Washington State Legislature. RCW 5.56.010 When Witnesses Must Attend – Fees and Allowances A subpoena served on a distant witness without those fees is a legitimate basis to resist compliance.
What You Must Do After You’re Served
A properly served subpoena creates a legal obligation. If it commands testimony, you must appear at the specified time and place. If it demands documents or tangible things, you must produce them as described.
Some real limits protect you. You only have to produce documents within your own possession, custody, or control. Records that belong to a third party or that you can’t access cannot be forced out of you. The subpoena must also describe what it wants with enough specificity that you can reasonably identify it. A demand for “all documents related to your business” would almost certainly fail that test. If you’re commanded only to produce documents (not to testify), you don’t need to show up in person; you can deliver the records as directed.1Washington Courts. Rule 45 – Subpoena
Medical Records
Subpoenas for medical records trigger extra requirements under Washington’s Uniform Health Care Information Act. Before serving a subpoena on a health care provider, the requesting attorney must give advance notice to both the provider and the patient, with at least fourteen days for the patient to seek a protective order.4Washington State Legislature. RCW 70.02 Medical Records – Health Care Information Access and Disclosure If the requesting party skips that notice, the provider may not disclose the records. Federal HIPAA rules can add obligations on top of that.
Financial Records
Financial records carry their own layer of protection. The federal Right to Financial Privacy Act requires government agencies to satisfy specific notice requirements before subpoenaing consumer financial records from banks and other institutions, giving customers written notice of what is being sought and an opportunity to challenge the request before disclosure.
How To Challenge a Subpoena
Getting served does not mean you’re stuck. Washington gives you three ways to push back, and choosing among them depends on what’s wrong with the subpoena.
Motion To Quash
A motion to quash asks the court to cancel the subpoena or narrow its scope. Under CR 45, the court must quash or modify a subpoena that requires disclosure of privileged or protected information without a valid waiver, or that subjects the recipient to undue burden.1Washington Courts. Rule 45 – Subpoena The court can also deny the motion on the condition that the subpoenaing party pay the reasonable cost of production, which helps when the real problem is expense.
Privilege is one of the strongest grounds. If a subpoena reaches for attorney-client communications, Washington’s Rule of Professional Conduct 1.6 requires the lawyer to assert all nonfrivolous privilege claims on the client’s behalf before disclosing anything.5Washington Courts. Rule 1.6 Confidentiality of Information The deadline is unforgiving: a motion to quash must be filed before the compliance date. Miss that window and you may waive your objections entirely.
Protective Order
A protective order reshapes a subpoena rather than killing it. Under CR 26(c), anyone affected can ask the court to impose conditions on compliance. The court has broad discretion. It can bar inquiry into certain topics, order disclosure only in a designated way, keep trade secrets or confidential commercial information sealed, or limit who may be present during discovery.6Washington Courts. CR 26 General Provisions Governing Discovery
These orders come up often with medical records, proprietary business data, and trade secrets. If a competitor subpoenas your pricing models or customer lists, a protective order might allow only the opposing attorneys, not the opposing company’s employees, to review the documents under a confidentiality agreement. The court weighs the requesting party’s need against the harm disclosure would cause.
Written Objections
Written objections are the lowest-friction option and do not require going to court, at least initially. If you’re commanded to produce documents, you can serve written objections on the issuing party within 14 days after service of the subpoena, or before the compliance date if that’s sooner.1Washington Courts. Rule 45 – Subpoena Common grounds include overbreadth, irrelevance, and unreasonable expense.
Once objections are served, the burden shifts. The issuing party has to either narrow the subpoena or file a motion to compel. That forces a negotiation before a judge gets involved. Two catches. Objections must be specific; a vague complaint that something is “burdensome” without explaining why will not hold up. And missing the deadline can waive the right to contest the subpoena later.
Penalties for Ignoring a Subpoena
Washington courts take subpoena enforcement seriously, and the penalties escalate fast. The main enforcement tool is contempt of court. Under RCW 7.21.010, contempt includes intentionally refusing to appear as a witness, refusing to be sworn, refusing to answer without lawful authority, or refusing to produce a document.7Washington State Legislature. Chapter 7.21 RCW Contempt of Court
Washington splits contempt into two categories with very different penalties:
- Remedial contempt under RCW 7.21.030 is designed to coerce compliance. The court can impose a forfeiture of up to $2,000 per day for as long as the contempt continues, along with imprisonment that lasts until the person complies. The jail time has no fixed cap; it runs as long as it serves a coercive purpose, meaning the person holds the key to their own cell.8Washington State Legislature. RCW 7.21.030 Remedial Sanctions – Payment for Losses
- Punitive contempt under RCW 7.21.040 is designed to punish. Each separate act of contempt can bring a fine of up to $5,000, imprisonment for up to 364 days, or both.9Washington State Legislature. RCW 7.21.040 Punitive Sanctions – Fines
In criminal proceedings, a witness who fails to appear after being properly subpoenaed may face an arrest warrant. Administrative agencies have their own tools: the Human Rights Commission and Labor & Industries can seek court enforcement of investigative subpoenas, and businesses that refuse to produce required records may face regulatory penalties including possible license revocation.
If you think a subpoena is improper, use one of the three challenge mechanisms above. Silence is not one of them.
Out-of-State Witnesses
If the witness or records you need are outside Washington, CR 45 does not reach them directly. Washington has adopted the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act under Chapter 5.51 RCW, which creates a streamlined path for compelling testimony or documents from someone in another state without hiring local counsel or filing a separate lawsuit there.10Washington State Legislature. Chapter 5.51 RCW Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act
The process runs in two steps. The attorney first obtains a subpoena from the Washington court where the case is pending. That subpoena is then presented to the clerk of court in the county where the out-of-state witness is located, and the local clerk issues a subpoena on the same terms. The locally issued subpoena is what gets served.
Two details trip people up. Any challenge (motions to quash, motions to modify, requests for protective orders) must be brought in the state where discovery is happening, not in Washington, and that state’s rules govern the dispute. And if the witness’s state has not adopted the UIDDA, the process becomes more complicated and may require letters rogatory or a miscellaneous court action there. Most states have adopted the UIDDA, but confirm before you start.