Under the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act, § 8.01-412.10, the foreign subpoena is submitted to the circuit court clerk for the city or county where discovery is sought, with a reciprocity statement and a health care attestation. The Act requires no Virginia attorney. Served 123 LLC handles the filing and service.
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Every Virginia Order Includes
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Every Virginia County and City
Served 123 LLC handles subpoena domestications in all 95 counties and 38 independent cities. The finder names the circuit court clerk where discovery is sought, and the directory lists each address. Search by town or ZIP code; a city that shares a county’s circuit court shows that court and its address.
Documents Subpoena
A subpoena for business or health records goes through the same circuit court clerk as one for testimony, under the same Act. Patient records carry their own statute, with copies and notices the records section below sets out. Your written quote confirms the path, before you pay.
Virginia Subpoena Domestication Order
One written quote covers document preparation, any issuer’s or clerk’s fee and service if ordered.
The table gives each point of the clerk route with its statute or rule, and the steps below show the order of the work, from the papers you send to the signed proof.
| Point | Virginia | Statute or Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Law | The Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act, for requests submitted on or after July 1, 2009 | § 8.01-412.8 to § 8.01-412.15 |
| Venue | The circuit court where the deposition or production takes place | § 8.01-412.10(A) |
| What Goes In | The foreign subpoena, a reciprocity statement and an attestation under penalty of perjury | § 8.01-412.10(A) |
| No Attestation | The clerk does not issue and presents the request to the court | § 8.01-412.10(F) |
| Who Issues | Only the circuit court clerk, promptly, under that court’s procedure | § 8.01-412.10(B), (E) |
| Appearance | Not an appearance in Virginia courts; no civil action need be filed | § 8.01-412.10(D) |
| What It Carries | The foreign terms, with all counsel of record and unrepresented parties: names, addresses and telephone numbers | § 8.01-412.10(C) |
| Fee | The clerk’s fee is stated in your written quote | § 17.1-275(F) |
| Service | The sheriff, a non-party adult 18 or older, or a private process server | § 8.01-412.11; § 8.01-293(A) |
| Method | In person, then a family member 16 or older at the abode, then posting | § 8.01-296 |
| Proof | Return to the clerk’s office within 72 hours of service | § 8.01-325 |
| Witness Money | Daily mileage at the appropriation act rate, plus tolls | § 17.1-612 |
| Deposition Place | A non-party: the county or city of residence, work or business, or a place agreed | Rule 4:5(a1)(ii) |
| Motions | The court in the discovery circuit; a separate civil action need not be filed | § 8.01-412.13 |
Your subpoena comes to us with the witness, your dates, the counsel list and who signs the attestation, and your written quote confirms the steps before you pay.
We prepare the reciprocity statement for signature and the Virginia subpoena with the foreign terms and all counsel of record.
The clerk of the circuit where discovery is sought issues it promptly, in accordance with that court’s procedure.
Where the clerk asks for it, as in Loudoun and Fairfax, your side certifies that a copy of the request went to counsel.
Our private process server delivers it to the witness in person, or as § 8.01-296 next allows at the abode.
We prepare the signed return and deliver it for filing; § 8.01-325(A) has it reach the clerk’s office within 72 hours of service.
Under § 32.1-127.1:03(H)(5), “If no motion to quash is filed within 15 days of the date of the request or of the attorney-issued subpoena”, the requesting party certifies to the provider that the time has elapsed. Under § 1-210, the day of the request is left out, and a last day on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday runs to the next day that is none of those.
A planning aid, not legal advice. It does not see a holiday the Governor or President appoints later or a day the clerk’s office closes, either of which can only make the date later, or a court order setting another time. If a date is close, ask counsel.
Virginia enacted the Act by statute in 2009, as Article 6.2 of Chapter 14 of Title 8.01, and Rule 4:5 points depositions under a foreign subpoena to it. The quotations below are § 8.01-412.10: where the request goes, who issues and what the Virginia subpoena must carry.
To request the issuance of a subpoena under this article, a party shall submit to the clerk of court in the circuit in which discovery is sought to be conducted in the Commonwealth (i) a foreign subpoena; (ii) a written statement that the law of the foreign jurisdiction grants reciprocal privileges to citizens of the Commonwealth for taking discovery in the jurisdiction that issued the foreign subpoena; and (iii) an attestation, made under penalty of perjury, stating whether the subpoena seeks documents, information, or testimony related to protected health care activity as defined in § 32.1-377
Served 123 LLC prepares the Virginia request and handles the clerk step.
Get a Free Quote Online →Except as provided in subsection F, when a party submits a foreign subpoena to a clerk of court in the Commonwealth, the clerk, in accordance with that court's procedure, shall promptly issue a subpoena for service upon the person to which the foreign subpoena is directed.
1. Incorporate the terms used in the foreign subpoena; and
2. Contain or be accompanied by the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all counsel of record in the proceeding to which the subpoena relates and of any party not represented by counsel.
Official texts: Va. Code § 8.01-412.8, § 8.01-412.9, § 8.01-412.10, § 8.01-412.11, § 8.01-412.12, § 8.01-412.13, § 8.01-412.14, § 8.01-412.15; § 8.01-293, § 8.01-296, § 8.01-325, § 8.01-413, § 17.1-258.3, § 17.1-612, § 2.2-2823, § 32.1-127.1:03, § 1-210 and § 2.2-3300; Rules of the Supreme Court of Virginia 1:12, 4:1, 4:5 and 4:9A; 45 C.F.R. § 164.512. General information, not legal advice. The official text controls.
Served 123 LLC prepares the papers under the Act, and your written quote confirms the steps, before you pay.
Get a Free Quote Online →These cards set out who may serve, how, the return and its contents, what the witness is owed, where a non-party is deposed, a subpoena to a company, where a motion goes and the certificates some clerks ask for. For a summons or other court papers, see process service in Virginia.
Under § 8.01-412.11 the subpoena “shall be served in compliance with the applicable statutes of the Commonwealth for service of a subpoena.” Section 8.01-293(A) authorizes the sheriff and “Any person 18 years of age or older and who is not a party or otherwise interested in the subject matter in controversy.”
§§ 8.01-412.11, 8.01-293(A)Section 8.01-293(A)(3) adds a third kind of server for a subpoena or other process, the private process server Served 123 LLC sends: “any person 18 years of age or older and who is not a party or otherwise interested in the subject matter in controversy, and who charges a fee for service of process.”
§ 8.01-293(A)(3)Section 8.01-296 starts with delivery “to the party in person”. If the person “is not found at his usual place of abode”, a copy may go to a family member there, “other than a temporary sojourner or guest, and who is of the age of 16 years or older”.
§ 8.01-296(1), (2)(a)Posting is the fallback, not the start: “If such service cannot be effected under subdivision 2 a, then by posting a copy of such process at the front door or at such other door as appears to be the main entrance of such place of abode”.
§ 8.01-296(2)(b)Section 8.01-325 sets the clock for every server: “Unless otherwise directed by the court, the person serving process shall make return thereof to the clerk’s office within seventy-two hours of service”.
§ 8.01-325A private server’s return carries “his affidavit of such qualifications; the date and manner of service and the name of the party served”, plus “an annotation that the service was by a private server, and the name, address, and telephone number of the server”.
§ 8.01-325A witness “from within or without the Commonwealth” is reimbursed “for his daily mileage as prescribed in § 2.2-2823” and “expenses for the tolls.” Section 2.2-2823 adds: “If transportation is by private means, reimbursement shall be at the rate as specified in the current general appropriation act.”
§§ 17.1-612, 2.2-2823Section 17.1-612 says how the sum is fixed: “On his oath an entry of the sum he is entitled to and for what and by what party it is to be paid shall be made”, and, for any attendance other than before the General Assembly, “in other cases by the clerk of the court in which the case is or the person before whom the witness attended.”
§ 17.1-612Under Rule 4:5(a1)(ii), a non-party deposition “must be taken in the county or city where the non-party witness resides, is employed, or has a principal place of business; at a place upon which the witness and the parties to the litigation agree; or at a place that the court may, for good cause, designate.”
Rule 4:5(a1)(ii)When a company, partnership or agency is named as the deponent, Rule 4:5(b)(6) puts a sentence in the subpoena itself, so the Virginia subpoena carries it: “A subpoena must advise a nonparty organization of its duty to make this designation and to confer with the serving party.”
Rule 4:5(b)(6)Under § 8.01-412.13, a motion to quash, modify or enforce, or for a protective order, “shall comply with the statutes and rules of court of the Commonwealth and be submitted to the court in the circuit in which discovery is to be conducted. A separate civil action need not be filed.”
§ 8.01-412.13For a deposition, Rule 4:1(c) lets “the court in the county or city where the deposition is to be taken” act, and that court “may make any order which justice requires to protect a party or person from annoyance, embarrassment, oppression, or undue burden or expense”.
Rule 4:1(c)Rule 4:1(b)(8) adds a step before any discovery motion: “A motion under this Rule must be accompanied by a certification that the movant has in good faith conferred or attempted to confer with other affected parties in an effort to resolve the dispute without court action.”
Rule 4:1(b)(8)Loudoun asks for “A certificate that a copy of your request has been served, pursuant to Virginia Supreme Court Rule 1:12, upon counsel of record and to parties having no counsel”. Fairfax asks for a statement “that the opposing party was mailed a copy of the request for subpoena duces tecum.”
Loudoun and Fairfax clerk instructionsServed 123 LLC handles the service and the signed proof of service.
Get a Free Quote Online →These cards cover health records under § 32.1-127.1:03 and HIPAA: the return date floor, copies to the person and the other side, the notices, mailed copies, motions and the provider’s charges.
Rule 4:9A(e) sends patient records to their own statute: “Patient health records protected by the privacy provisions of Code Section 32.1-127.1:03 may be disclosed only in accordance with the provisions and procedures prescribed by that statute.”
Rule 4:9A(e)Section 32.1-127.1:03(H)(1) sets a floor: “No subpoena duces tecum for health records shall set a return date earlier than 15 days from the date of the subpoena except by order of a court or administrative agency for good cause shown.”
§ 32.1-127.1:03(H)(1)When a nonparty’s own records are sought, the request goes to that person too: no party shall seek them “unless a copy of the request for the subpoena or a copy of the attorney-issued subpoena is provided to the nonparty witness simultaneously with filing the request”.
§ 32.1-127.1:03(H)(1)When the records sought are another party’s own, § 32.1-127.1:03(H)(1) sends a copy of the request “to the other party’s counsel or to the other party if pro se, simultaneously with filing the request or issuance of the subpoena.”
§ 32.1-127.1:03(H)(1)Where the records belong to a pro se party or nonparty witness, the requester “shall deliver to the pro se party or nonparty witness together with the copy of the request for subpoena” a “statement informing them of their rights and remedies.”
§ 32.1-127.1:03(H)(1)The request to a health care entity “shall include a Notice in the same part of the request in which the recipient of the subpoena duces tecum is directed where and when to return the health records. Such notice shall be in boldface capital letters”.
§ 32.1-127.1:03(H)(2)A provider covered by HIPAA may disclose health information “In response to a subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process” without a court order when it “receives satisfactory assurance” of reasonable efforts to see that the patient “has been given notice of the request”.
45 C.F.R. § 164.512(e)(1)(ii)A health care provider whose records are subpoenaed “may comply with the subpoena by a timely mailing to the clerk issuing the subpoena or in whose court the action is pending properly authenticated copies, photographs or microphotographs in lieu of the originals.”
§ 8.01-413(A)Rule 4:9A(c)(3) gives the producer a motion: “The court, upon written motion promptly made by the person so required to produce, or by the party against whom such production is sought, may (1) quash or modify the subpoena”.
Rule 4:9A(c)(3)Section 8.01-413 puts the copying cost on the requester: the party requesting the subpoena “or on whose behalf an attorney-issued subpoena duces tecum was issued shall be liable for the reasonable charges of the health care provider”.
§ 8.01-413For a records request, we prepare the papers under the Act, and your written quote confirms the steps, before you pay.
Get a Free Quote Online →Each of these points comes from a Virginia statute or court rule. Most come from the request itself, the service rules or the health records statute.
Before service, we compare the papers we prepare with the statutes and raise anything that needs your input.
Type a town, city or ZIP code to find the county or independent city, and the finder names its circuit court clerk.
The Virginia Circuit Court Directory gives each circuit court clerk’s contact details.
A witness may sit just over the line, so the route changes with the state. Each “No” rests on that state’s own rule text; “Check” means confirm that state’s filing rules for an out-of-state requester.
| State | Act Adopted | Local Attorney Required by the Act | Who Issues |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia | Va. Code §§ 8.01-412.8 to 8.01-412.15 (2009, c. 701) | No | Circuit court clerk, discovery circuit |
| Maryland | Md. Code, Cts. & Jud. Proc. Title 9, Subtitle 4, with Rules 2-510.1 and 2-422.1 | No | Circuit court clerk, discovery county |
| North Carolina | N.C. Gen. Stat. ch. 1F (S.L. 2011-247) | Check | Clerk of court, discovery county |
| Tennessee | Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 24-9-201 to 24-9-207 (Public Chapter 908, 2008) | Check | Clerk of court, discovery county |
| Kentucky | KRS 421.360 (2008 Ky. Acts ch. 114) | Check | Circuit Court clerk, discovery county |
| West Virginia | W. Va. Code §§ 56-12-1 to 56-12-8 | Check | Clerk of court, discovery county |
| D.C. | D.C. Code §§ 13-441 to 13-449, with Super. Ct. Civ. R. 28-I | Check | Clerk of the Superior Court |
Each answer cites a Virginia statute or rule. For questions that apply in every state, see our Subpoena Domestication FAQ. General information, not legal advice.
Only the place of discovery counts, not where the witness lives. Under § 8.01-412.10(A) the request goes to the circuit in which discovery is sought, and several independent cities share a county’s circuit court, so the finder lists every county and city with the court that serves it. Type the witness’s town into the finder to get the clerk.
The foreign subpoena, a statement that the trial state grants Virginians the same discovery privilege, and the health care attestation signed under penalty of perjury. Subsection (A) of § 8.01-412.10 requires all three, and subsection (F) stops issuance when the attestation is missing. We draft the statement and the Virginia subpoena for your side to sign. The quoted text lists them.
Yes. Under § 8.01-412.10(A), whoever signs submits to Virginia’s courts if the attestation proves false, and can be sued or penalized there. The attestation says whether the subpoena seeks material tied to protected health care activity as § 32.1-377 defines it, so the signer should be someone who knows what the subpoena asks for. See the attestation card.
No. Nothing in the Act, Article 6.2 of Chapter 14, calls for a Virginia signature: subsection (D) of § 8.01-412.10 treats the request as no appearance, and Fairfax County’s written instructions say local counsel is not required. The clerk, not a lawyer, issues the Virginia subpoena under subsection (E). See the statute section.
Only those that extend a similar privilege to people in Virginia. Section 8.01-412.14 makes that the condition, and the request carries a written statement under § 8.01-412.10(A) that the trial state’s law grants it. Loudoun’s clerk asks that the requesting attorney sign that statement. See the reciprocity card.
Yes. Section 8.01-412.11 applies Virginia’s own subpoena service statutes, and § 8.01-293(A) lets a sheriff, any adult with no stake in the case, or a private process server paid for the work deliver process. Our server is the paid private kind that section describes; we prepare the signed return and deliver it for filing. See who may serve.
Yes, once the witness is not found at the usual place of abode. Under § 8.01-296(2)(a) the server may then make delivery to a family member living there who is 16 or older and not a guest, and posting at the main door under (2)(b) comes only after that fails. Personal delivery is always the first choice. See the service cards.
The server’s affidavit of qualifications, when and how it was served, who received it, a note that a private server served it, and the server’s contact details, under § 8.01-325. Section 8.01-325(A) has the return reach the clerk’s office within 72 hours of service; we prepare the signed return and deliver it for filing in that window. See the proof cards.
Not under Rule 4:5(a1)(ii) without agreement or a court order. A non-party deposition belongs in the county or city of the witness’s home, work or business; another place needs the witness and parties to agree, or a court designation for good cause. See the deposition card.
Rule 4:5(b)(6) requires the subpoena to tell a nonparty organization that it must designate who will testify for it and confer with the serving party. We put that advice in every Virginia subpoena we prepare for a company. See the organization card.
By mileage and tolls under § 17.1-612, at the private-vehicle rate that § 2.2-2823 takes from the current general appropriation act. The amount, and which party owes it, is entered on the witness’s oath. The per-mile rate is the one in the appropriation act in force. See the witness card.
In the circuit where the discovery is to take place. Section 8.01-412.13 sends motions to quash, modify, enforce or for a protective order to that court under Virginia rules, without a separate lawsuit, and Rule 4:9A(c)(3) lets a person ordered to produce documents move promptly. See the motion card.
Yes. Under Rule 4:1(b)(8), a motion under Rule 4:1 carries a certification that the movant tried in good faith to settle the dispute with the other affected parties first, so that effort comes before a protective order motion is filed under Rule 4:1(c). See the conferral card.
Yes. Rule 4:9A(e) makes § 32.1-127.1:03 the only route for protected patient records, with its own floor on the return date, its own copies to the patient or the other side, and a boldface notice to the provider. The federal HIPAA rule adds its notice assurance. See the records cards.
Yes. Under § 8.01-413(A), a provider whose records are subpoenaed may send authenticated copies by mail, in time, to the clerk who issued the subpoena, in place of the originals. The party who asked for the subpoena pays the provider’s reasonable charges under the same section. See the mailing card.
At least five. Under § 8.01-412.10(B) the clerk acts promptly, following that court’s own procedure, and Fairfax County asks filers to allow at least five working days for the clerk to prepare it and to leave 10 days’ notice for an appearance and 15 for documents, so the deposition date sets how early the request goes in. See the route.
Clerk fees come from § 17.1-275, which under subsection (F) governs what circuit court clerks charge for the services it lists. Rather than print amounts, we put the clerk’s fee in your written quote, together with document preparation and service if you order it, and you see the full figure before you pay. See the route.
When the § 32.1-127.1:03(H)(5) period ends, counted from the date of the request under § 1-210: the request date itself is left out, and a last day on a weekend or legal holiday carries forward. Only after that may the requesting party certify to the provider that no motion came in. The calculator gives the date.
Yes. One written quote, given before you pay, includes the clerk’s fee and covers preparing the reciprocity statement and the Virginia subpoena with all counsel of record, the step at the circuit court clerk in the discovery circuit and, if you order it, service by our private process server with the return § 8.01-325 calls for. See the route.
One written quote covers document preparation, any issuer’s or clerk’s fee and service if ordered.
Questions? Call (800) 321-2377
Nearby States: Maryland · North Carolina · Tennessee
