Rule 45.1 adopts the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act: a foreign subpoena is submitted to the circuit clerk of the county where discovery is sought; its Reporter’s Notes say issuance requires no local attorney. Served 123 LLC gets it issued and, if ordered, serves the witness.
What to Send Us
Every Arkansas Order Includes
Skip tracing is available if the address turns out to be bad.
Every Arkansas County
We work in all 75 counties, with the clerk’s fee in your quote; the county finder shows the discovery county’s circuit clerk.
Records-Only Subpoenas Notify Every Party
Under Rule 45(b), every other party gets it by e-mail, fax or hand delivery at least three business days before the records holder.
No Case Until a Motion to Enforce
A routine request opens no case; a motion to enforce after a written objection does, and the clerk collects the applicable fee.
Arkansas Subpoena Domestication Order
Our quote covers document preparation, the clerk’s fee and service if ordered.
Rule 45.1 and Rule 45 of the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure set each of the four stops below, from the circuit clerk’s counter to the attorney who keeps the return.
Your foreign subpoena and the draft Arkansas subpoena we prepare go to the discovery county’s circuit clerk, and asking for it is not an appearance in Arkansas courts.
The clerk promptly issues the Arkansas subpoena under that court’s procedure, opens no case and charges only the § 21-6-402(b)(1) fee.
Our adult non-party server hands it to the witness anywhere in Arkansas: a deposition subpoena with the fee and mileage tendered, five or more business days before the deposition; a records-only subpoena once every other party has had it three business days, so tell us the date that notice went out, under Special Instructions.
The proof of service goes to the attorney who requested the subpoena, never the circuit clerk, and that attorney keeps it for any party, or the witness, who asks.
Rule 45.1(c)(3) gives the person served a written objection “within ten days after the service or on or before the time specified in the subpoena for compliance if such time is less than ten days.” Since ten days is under fourteen, Rule 6(a) leaves out the day of service and every intermediate Saturday, Sunday and legal holiday.
The Arkansas Supreme Court made the uniform act part of its civil rules in 2017 Ark. 356, effective January 1, 2018. The quotations below come from Rule 45.1 itself and cover the county, the appearance question, issuance, the fee and service.
To request issuance of a subpoena under this rule, a party must submit a foreign subpoena to the circuit clerk in the county in which discovery is sought to be conducted.
A request for the issuance of a subpoena under this rule does not constitute an appearance in the courts of this state.
When a party submits a foreign subpoena to a circuit clerk, the clerk, in accordance with the court’s procedure, shall promptly issue a subpoena for service upon the person to which the foreign subpoena is directed.
At the time of issuance of the subpoena, the circuit clerk shall not open a case and shall not collect a fee other than that provided by Ark. Code Ann. section 21-6-402(b)(1).
A subpoena issued under subdivision (c) of this rule must be served in compliance with Rule 45(c).
No reported Arkansas appellate decision has yet interpreted Rule 45.1; the rule’s own text governs submitting the foreign subpoena, its issuance and its service. The Reporter’s Notes to the rule say the procedure is based on the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act the uniform law commissioners adopted in 2007.
Official texts: Ark. R. Civ. P. 6, 26, 45 and 45.1, with the Reporter’s Notes; Ark. R. Evid. 503 and 902; Ark. Code Ann. §§ 21-6-402 and 21-6-403; 45 C.F.R. § 164.512; In re Recommendations of the Committee on Civil Practice, 2017 Ark. 356. General information, not legal advice. The official text controls.
Served 123 LLC drafts the Arkansas subpoena for the circuit clerk and, if you order it, has it served once it issues.
Get a Free Quote Online →Rule 45.1(d) points service to Rule 45(c), and Rule 45.1(f) sends an application for a protective order or to enforce, quash or modify the subpoena to the court of the discovery county under the Arkansas rules. For a summons or other court papers, see process service in Arkansas.
Rule 45.1(d) sends service to Rule 45(c): the sheriff of the county in which it is to be served, a deputy, or any other person who is not a party and is not less than eighteen years of age may serve it, and “Service shall be made by delivering a copy of the subpoena to the person named therein”.
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45.1(d); 45(c)Rule 45(c) also lets a subpoena for a trial, hearing or deposition be “served by an attorney of record for a party by any form of mail addressed to the person to be served with a return receipt requested and delivery restricted to the addressee or agent of the addressee.” Our server serves in person.
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45(c)A deposition subpoena may be served at any place within the state. Its witness can be required to attend at any place within 100 miles of where the witness resides, is employed or transacts business in person, or at another convenient place fixed by court order.
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45(c); 45(e)A deposition subpoena must be accompanied by a tender of a witness fee: $30.00 per day for attendance and $0.25 per mile for travel from the witness’s residence to the place of the deposition. We advance both on the same written quote as the clerk’s fee and the service.
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45(e)The deposition witness must be properly served at least five business days before the date of the deposition, unless the court grants leave for the subpoena to be issued within that period. The circuit clerk’s issuance comes first, so the deposition date sets the schedule for both steps.
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45(e)Return or proof of service is made not to the circuit clerk but to the attorney who requested the subpoena, who retains it and furnishes a copy to any party or to the deponent on request. The proof on the court’s subpoena form is declared true and correct under penalty of perjury.
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45.1(c)(2)Within ten days after service, or by the compliance time if that is less than ten days, the person subpoenaed may serve a written objection to the subpoena or the discovery sought on the attorney who caused it to issue. An objection then bars going forward without a court order. Rule 6(a) drops “intermediate Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays” from any period “less than fourteen (14) days.” Under Rule 45(b), on motion made promptly and in any event at or before the compliance time, the court may quash or modify an unreasonable or oppressive subpoena. “Upon an objection, the party who requested the subpoena may move to enforce the subpoena by filing a motion, with notice to the subject of the subpoena, for an order to enforce the subpoena and proceed with discovery. The motion shall be filed with the circuit clerk.” On that filing, the clerk “shall assign the matter a case number and collect the applicable fee”, and a later application to quash, modify or protect “shall be filed and heard in this case, and no additional fees shall be assessed.”
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45.1(c)(3); 45(b); 6(a)Under Rule 45.1(f), a motion to enforce, quash, modify or protect follows the Arkansas rules, including Rule 26(c) and Rule 45(b) and (e), in the discovery county’s court. Rule 26(f)(2): “When the defense to production of discovery is any privilege recognized by Arkansas law or the opinion-work-product protection, orders pursuant to Rule of Civil Procedure 37 compelling production of discovery or denying a motion to quash production of materials pursuant to Rule 45 shall be supported by factual findings and shall address the following factors: (A) the need to prevent irreparable injury; (B) the likelihood that the claim of privilege or protection would be sustained on appeal; (C) the likelihood that an immediate appeal would delay a scheduled trial date; (D) the diligence of the parties in seeking or resisting the discovery in the circuit court; (E) the circuit court’s written statement of reasons supporting or opposing immediate review; and (F) any conflict with precedent or other controlling authority as to which there is substantial ground for difference of opinion.”
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45.1(f); 26(f)(2)Served 123 LLC makes the Rule 45(c) service and sends the proof to the requesting attorney.
Get a Free Quote Online →A subpoena for documents alone carries its own notice step under Rule 45(b). For health records held by a HIPAA covered entity, 45 C.F.R. § 164.512(e) sets federal conditions on disclosure. The Arkansas Rules of Evidence include the Rule 902(11) custodian certification and the Rule 503 patient’s privilege.
Under Rule 45(b), “If a subpoena does not command an appearance, then it must be served by e-mail, facsimile, or hand delivery on all other parties at least three (3) business days before the subpoena is served on the person to whom it is directed.” And “The party issuing a subpoena that does not command an appearance must promptly provide a copy to all other parties of all material produced in response to the subpoena.” Tell us the date that notice went out to the other parties; we serve the records holder once those three business days have passed.
Ark. R. Civ. P. 45(b)Under Rule 902(11), no extrinsic evidence of authenticity is required for “The original or a copy of a domestic record that meets the requirements of Rule 803(6), as shown by a certification of the custodian or another qualified person that complies with a state or federal statute, or a rule prescribed by the Supreme Court, such as a sworn affidavit.” The party offering it owes an adverse party, before the trial or hearing, reasonable written notice of the intent to offer the record, and must make the record and certification available for inspection, so that the party has a fair opportunity to challenge them.
Ark. R. Evid. 902(11)Under 45 C.F.R. § 164.512(e)(1), “A covered entity may disclose protected health information in the course of any judicial or administrative proceeding: (i) In response to an order of a court or administrative tribunal, provided that the covered entity discloses only the protected health information expressly authorized by such order; or (ii) In response to a subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process, that is not accompanied by an order of a court or administrative tribunal, if: (A) The covered entity receives satisfactory assurance, as described in paragraph (e)(1)(iii) of this section, from the party seeking the information that reasonable efforts have been made by such party to ensure that the individual who is the subject of the protected health information that has been requested has been given notice of the request; or (B) The covered entity receives satisfactory assurance, as described in paragraph (e)(1)(iv) of this section, from the party seeking the information that reasonable efforts have been made by such party to secure a qualified protective order that meets the requirements of paragraph (e)(1)(v) of this section.” Under (e)(1)(iii), the notice assurance is a written statement and accompanying documentation demonstrating that: “(A) The party requesting such information has made a good faith attempt to provide written notice to the individual (or, if the individual's location is unknown, to mail a notice to the individual's last known address); (B) The notice included sufficient information about the litigation or proceeding in which the protected health information is requested to permit the individual to raise an objection to the court or administrative tribunal; and (C) The time for the individual to raise objections to the court or administrative tribunal has elapsed, and: (1) No objections were filed; or (2) All objections filed by the individual have been resolved by the court or the administrative tribunal and the disclosures being sought are consistent with such resolution.”
45 C.F.R. § 164.512(e)(1)(i)-(iii)The second route, under (e)(1)(ii)(B), runs through a qualified protective order, and paragraph (iv) sets the written statement and documentation that route needs: “(iv) For the purposes of paragraph (e)(1)(ii)(B) of this section, a covered entity receives satisfactory assurances from a party seeking protected health information, if the covered entity receives from such party a written statement and accompanying documentation demonstrating that: (A) The parties to the dispute giving rise to the request for information have agreed to a qualified protective order and have presented it to the court or administrative tribunal with jurisdiction over the dispute; or (B) The party seeking the protected health information has requested a qualified protective order from such court or administrative tribunal.” Under (v), “a qualified protective order means, with respect to protected health information requested under paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this section, an order of a court or of an administrative tribunal or a stipulation by the parties to the litigation or administrative proceeding that: (A) Prohibits the parties from using or disclosing the protected health information for any purpose other than the litigation or proceeding for which such information was requested; and (B) Requires the return to the covered entity or destruction of the protected health information (including all copies made) at the end of the litigation or proceeding.” And under (vi): “Notwithstanding paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this section, a covered entity may disclose protected health information in response to lawful process described in paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this section without receiving satisfactory assurance under paragraph (e)(1)(ii)(A) or (B) of this section, if the covered entity makes reasonable efforts to provide notice to the individual sufficient to meet the requirements of paragraph (e)(1)(iii) of this section or to seek a qualified protective order sufficient to meet the requirements of paragraph (e)(1)(v) of this section.”
45 C.F.R. § 164.512(e)(1)(iv)-(vi)Rule 503(b): “A patient has a privilege to refuse to disclose and to prevent any other person from disclosing his medical records or confidential communications made for the purpose of diagnosis or treatment of his physical, mental or emotional condition, including alcohol or drug addiction, among himself, physician or psychotherapist, and persons who are participating in the diagnosis or treatment under the direction of the physician or psychotherapist, including members of the patient’s family.” Rule 503(c): “The privilege may be claimed by the patient, his guardian or conservator, or the personal representative of a deceased patient. The person who was the physician or psychotherapist at the time of the communication is presumed to have authority to claim the privilege but only on behalf of the patient.” Rule 503(a)(5) defines a “medical record” as “any writing, document or electronically stored information pertaining to or created as a result of treatment, diagnosis or examination of a patient.” The first exception, 503(d)(1): “There is no privilege under this rule for communications relevant to an issue in proceedings to hospitalize the patient for mental illness, if the psychotherapist in the course of diagnosis or treatment has determined that the patient is in need of hospitalization.”
Ark. R. Evid. 503(a)(5), (b), (c), (d)(1)The second exception, Rule 503(d)(2): “If the court orders an examination of the physical, mental, or emotional condition of a patient, whether a party or a witness, communications made in the course thereof are not privileged under this rule with respect to the particular purpose for which the examination is ordered unless the court orders otherwise.” The third exception, Rule 503(d)(3)(A): “There is no privilege under this rule as to medical records or communications relevant to an issue of the physical, mental, or emotional condition of the patient in any proceeding in which he or she relies upon the condition as an element of his or her claim or defense, or, after the patient’s death, in any proceeding in which any party relies upon the condition as an element of his or her claim or defense.” Rule 503(d)(3)(B) then limits contact with the patient’s doctors: “Any informal, ex parte contact or communication with the patient’s physician or psychotherapist is prohibited, unless the patient expressly consents. The patient shall not be required, by order of court or otherwise, to authorize any communication with the physician or psychotherapist other than (i) the furnishing of medical records, and (ii) communications in the context of formal discovery procedures.”
Ark. R. Evid. 503(d)(2), (3)(A)-(B)Served 123 LLC has the Arkansas records subpoena issued and delivered to the custodian.
Get a Free Quote Online →Seven places an Arkansas Rule 45.1 subpoena can stall, from choosing the circuit clerk to the party notice and the return.
We check the papers we prepare and the service we make against the traps below and tell you what needs fixing.
Pick or search a county to see its circuit clerk, then start a quote. Where the directory below shows two offices for a county, the card names both and we confirm which.
Arkansas and its six neighbors, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and Oklahoma: the source of each state’s version of the act (Missouri uses its own rule instead), who issues the subpoena, and whether that text makes a local attorney necessary. A “Check” cell means that state’s text leaves the question open.
| State | Act Adopted | Local Attorney Required by the Act | Who Issues |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | Ark. R. Civ. P. 45.1 (2017 Ark. 356, eff. 2018) | No | Circuit clerk, discovery county |
| Missouri | None; Mo. Sup. Ct. R. 57.08 (eff. 1975) | Check | Circuit court order, county where the deponent is found |
| Tennessee | Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 24-9-201 to 24-9-207 (Public Chapter 908, 2008) | Check | Clerk of court, discovery county |
| Mississippi | Miss. Code Ann. §§ 11-59-1 to 11-59-15 (S.B. 2264, 2011); M.R.C.P. 45 | Check | Clerk of court, discovery county |
| Louisiana | La. R.S. 13:3825 (Act No. 793, 2014) | Check | Clerk of court, discovery parish |
| Texas | Tex. R. Civ. P. 201.3 (2025) | Check | District or county clerk, discovery county |
| Oklahoma | 12 O.S. § 3252 (H.B. 2229, 2021) | Check | Court clerk, discovery county |
Each answer rests on Rule 45.1, Rule 45 or the Arkansas Rules of Evidence. Questions that apply in any state are in our Subpoena Domestication FAQ. General information, not legal advice.
From a court rule, not a statute. The Arkansas Supreme Court wrote the uniform act into its Rules of Civil Procedure as Rule 45.1 through 2017 Ark. 356, and Rule 45.1 has been in force since January 1, 2018 for discovery in Arkansas in civil actions pending in other states. What Arkansas Rule 45.1 Requires quotes the controlling sentences.
The one serving the county where the deposition or the production will take place, under Rule 45.1(c)(1). Neither the trial court’s location nor counsel’s office decides it. Six counties have two circuit clerk offices in the circuit clerk directory, and for those we confirm which office takes it; the route follows from there.
Not for issuance. The Rule 45.1 Reporter’s Notes: “There is no requirement to hire local counsel to have the subpoena issued in Arkansas, and there is no need to present the matter to a judge before the subpoena can be issued.” And: “Any application to the Arkansas court relating to the discovery must comply with the law of Arkansas, including Arkansas’s law governing lawyers appearing in its courts.”
The draft Arkansas subpoena, the second of the only two documents the Reporter’s Notes say the clerk needs. You send the trial-state subpoena; we draft the Arkansas one that Rule 45.1(c)(4) describes, so include the list of counsel with your order. Each element the draft carries appears in the requirements section.
No. Rule 45.1(c)(2) forbids opening a case at issuance, so a routine request never gets a number. A number appears only at a second stage, if the witness objects and the requesting party then moves to enforce. The requirements and Ten Days to Object in Writing explain it.
Yes. Rule 45(c), which Rule 45.1(d) applies, lets any non-party aged eighteen or older serve the subpoena alongside the sheriff and deputies, so involving a sheriff’s office is optional. Our process servers meet that test in every Arkansas county. The service cards cite both rules.
Only when an attorney of record for a party does the mailing; Rule 45(c) gives no one else a mail option, and it also limits which kinds of mail qualify. Everyone else relies on in-person delivery, which is how our process server delivers the subpoena in every order we take. The conditions are in the mail card.
No. Rule 45(c) allows a deposition subpoena to be served at any place within Arkansas, so our server can reach the witness at home, at work or anywhere else in the state. The county decides which circuit clerk issues it and which court hears motions, not where service happens; see Served Anywhere in Arkansas.
No. Rule 45.1(c)(2) directs the return to the lawyer who asked for the subpoena, not the circuit clerk. Our server signs the proof of service and we send that signed proof to you, ready for your file. The proof card covers the signature line.
Three business days. Rule 45(b) has a subpoena that commands no appearance reach every other party by e-mail, fax or hand delivery that far ahead of the records holder, and whatever is produced is then shared with them. A Subpoena for Documents Alone gives the rule’s wording.
Ask the custodian for a Rule 902(11) certification in the document request so it arrives with the records, and serve the subpoena only after the party notice window closes. Certified Business Records quotes the rule’s conditions and the written notice to adverse parties.
You do, through us. Rule 45(e) sets a daily attendance amount and a mileage amount, and the tender must go out with the subpoena itself, so Served 123 LLC advances it on the same written quote as the clerk’s fee and service. The figures are in Witness Fee and Mileage.
At most ten days, with weekends and legal holidays left out of the count, under Rule 45.1(c)(3) and Rule 6(a); the objection deadline calculator counts them from the date served. The objection is written, goes to the attorney who had the subpoena issued, and may target the subpoena or the discovery it seeks. The rule’s text is in Ten Days to Object in Writing.
Yes. Under Rule 45.1(c)(3), once it is served the requesting party may go forward only under a court order. The requesting party may then move to enforce the subpoena in the discovery county’s court, which is the point where a case is first opened; the objection card has the rule.
The court in the county where the discovery is to be conducted, applying the Arkansas rules. Motions to Quash and Privilege Findings sets out Rule 45.1(f) and the findings a privilege ruling needs; Ten Days to Object in Writing covers the timing and how a motion to enforce opens a case.
Yes, with limits. Rule 503(b) sets the patient’s privilege, and Rule 503(d) sets three exceptions: proceedings to hospitalize the patient for mental illness, an examination the court orders, and a condition relied on as an element of a claim or defense. The Patient’s Privilege and the card after it quote the privilege and each exception in full, with every condition.
One fee: the one Ark. Code Ann. § 21-6-402(b)(1) provides. Rule 45.1(c)(2) bars any other fee at issuance, and the Reporter’s Notes describe it as the only fee in a routine request. Our one written quote already includes it, whatever the county charges. The requirements section covers the later stage too.
No fixed one. Promptly is the only measure Rule 45.1(c)(2) gives: the clerk issues it under that court’s own procedure, with no fixed number of days in the rule. We plan the order around your deposition or production date rather than a promised turnaround, and the route lists each stop on the way.
Five business days before the deposition, under Rule 45(e), unless the court grants leave for the subpoena to issue within that window. Issuance and service both have to fit ahead of that line, so give us the deposition date when you order. See Five Business Days Before the Deposition.
The applicable fee under Rule 45.1(c)(3), which the Reporter’s Notes identify as the § 21-6-403 filing fee, collected when the circuit clerk assigns the case number. That stage begins only after a written objection, when the requesting party moves to enforce. The requirements section describes what follows in that case.
Everything in one written quote: the draft subpoena we prepare, the circuit clerk’s fee under Rule 45.1(c)(2), and service when you order it, with any Rule 45(e) witness fee advanced on that same quote. Start with the order form; the route shows what happens after.
A single written quote covers document preparation, the circuit clerk’s fee and service, if you order it; for a deposition, the Rule 45(e) witness fee and mileage go on it too.
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Nearby States: Missouri · Tennessee · Mississippi
