A deposition subpoena for personal appearance is a court order requiring you to show up at a specific time and place and answer questions under oath. You have to comply, but the rules also give you protections: limits on how far you can be forced to travel, a cap on how long you can be questioned, fees for your time, and grounds to challenge a subpoena that’s defective or overreaching. Most people who receive one aren’t parties to the lawsuit. They’re witnesses one side believes has useful information.
Was the Subpoena Properly Served
A subpoena that arrives in your mailbox alone is not valid under federal rules. Someone at least 18 years old, who is not a party to the case, must hand-deliver a copy directly to you. That same person must also give you the fees for one day of attendance plus the mileage allowed by law at the moment of service. The one exception is a subpoena issued by the United States or a federal agency, which does not have to tender fees up front.1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 45 – Subpoena
If nothing was physically handed to you, or if the fees weren’t tendered, note that. Keep the envelope, save the delivery method, and write down when and how everything arrived. Those details matter if you later argue the service was defective.
What Happens If You Ignore It
The court where compliance is required can hold you in contempt for failing to obey a subpoena without an adequate excuse.1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 45 – Subpoena Contempt can carry fines and, in rare cases, jail. If you’re a party to the lawsuit or a corporate officer skipping your own deposition, the court must order you (or your attorney, or both) to pay the other side’s reasonable expenses caused by the no-show, including attorney’s fees, unless the failure was substantially justified.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 37 – Failure to Make Disclosures or to Cooperate in Discovery Court reporter booking fees, attorney travel, and rescheduling all fall on the no-show.
For parties, sanctions can go further. A judge can strike pleadings, bar evidence, or enter a default judgment. Treat the subpoena as mandatory unless and until a court says otherwise.
Where and How Long You Can Be Questioned
You cannot be forced to travel anywhere in the country. A subpoena can compel your appearance only within 100 miles of where you live, work, or regularly do business in person. If you’re a party to the lawsuit or a party’s officer, that radius expands to anywhere in the state where you reside, work, or regularly transact business. A subpoena that pushes beyond those limits must be quashed or modified on a timely motion.1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 45 – Subpoena
Questioning is also capped. Unless the parties agree or a court orders otherwise, a single deposition is limited to one day of seven hours total, covering all attorneys combined.3Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 30 – Depositions by Oral Examination If questioning turns repetitive or abusive, the deponent or any party can ask the court to end it early.
Fees and Mileage You’re Owed
Federal law entitles you to an attendance fee of $40 per day, which also covers travel time to and from the deposition.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1821 – Per Diem and Mileage Generally If you drive your own vehicle, you also receive a mileage allowance matching the rate the General Services Administration sets for federal employees, which is $0.725 per mile as of January 2026.5U.S. General Services Administration. Privately Owned Vehicle (POV) Mileage Reimbursement Rates
The $40 daily rate has not changed in decades and will not cover a day of lost wages for most people. If you’re a non-party witness and complying would cause significant expense, such as time off work or producing large volumes of records, the court can require the subpoenaing party to bear those additional costs. Expert witnesses negotiate compensation directly with the retaining attorney and are not limited to the statutory rate.
What the Deposition Itself Looks Like
Depositions almost never happen in a courtroom. Expect a conference room at a law firm or, increasingly, a video call. Present will typically be the attorneys for each side, a court reporter, and sometimes the parties themselves.
The court reporter places you under oath before questioning begins, just as at trial. Everything you say is recorded word for word. The attorney who issued the subpoena asks questions first, and then other attorneys get their turn. The scope is broad: it covers any non-privileged matter relevant to a party’s claims or defenses and proportional to the needs of the case.6Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 26 – Duty to Disclose; General Provisions Governing Discovery Questions that would be inadmissible at trial can still be asked at a deposition, so expect wider-ranging questioning than a courtroom would allow.
The deposition may also be video-recorded. The attorney scheduling it must state the recording method in the notice.3Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 30 – Depositions by Oral Examination If the notice didn’t mention video and a videographer arrives, you or your attorney can object. The party requesting the recording pays for it. Other parties can arrange additional recording methods at their own expense with prior notice.
When You Can Refuse to Answer
You are expected to answer every question, with narrow exceptions. You can refuse when a question calls for privileged information, such as attorney-client communications, spousal privilege, or Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination. You can also decline if a court order specifically limits the scope of questioning.
Your attorney, if you have one present, can instruct you not to answer, but only on those same grounds. An attorney cannot coach you through answers or tell you to stay silent just because a question is uncomfortable. If you refuse, the reason must be stated clearly on the record. The questioning attorney can then seek a court order compelling you to answer, and if the court agrees, you’ll be back in the chair.
How to Prepare
Review What You Know
Before the deposition, go through documents, emails, and records related to the case. The goal is to refresh your memory, not to memorize a script. Anything you bring with you, including notes and folders, can be requested by the attorneys and made part of the record. If the subpoena lists specific documents to produce, bring exactly those. Nothing extra.
Some subpoenas require both testimony and document production. If the document demands feel overbroad or would take significant time and expense to compile, you can serve written objections before the compliance deadline, generally within 14 days of receiving the subpoena or by the date specified for compliance, whichever comes first.1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 45 – Subpoena
Consider Your Own Attorney
You have the right to bring your own attorney, and it’s worth considering if you have any personal exposure in the case. Your attorney can prepare you for the likely questioning, object on the record, and advise you during breaks. The parties’ attorneys represent the parties, not you. If your interests could conflict with theirs, your own counsel is the only real protection. Bring a government-issued ID; you may be asked to identify yourself on the record.
Answering Questions
The most common mistake deposition witnesses make is volunteering information beyond what the question asks. Answer the question that was asked and stop. A simple “yes” or “no” is a complete answer when the question calls for one. If the attorney wants more, they’ll follow up.
If you don’t understand a question, say so and ask for it to be rephrased. If it bundles two issues, ask for it in parts. If you genuinely don’t remember, “I don’t recall” is a perfectly acceptable answer and is far better than guessing. Speculation under oath creates problems that accurate uncertainty never does. Stay calm, take your time, and don’t let a long pause pressure you into filling the silence.
Reviewing the Transcript Afterward
You have the right to review the transcript, but you (or any party) must request that before the deposition ends. Once requested, the court reporter notifies you when the transcript is ready, and you get 30 days from that notification to review it.3Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 30 – Depositions by Oral Examination
If you find errors, you submit a signed statement listing each change and your reason. These corrections go on an errata sheet. Fixing a typo or misheard word is straightforward. Changing a substantive answer, such as switching a “no” to a “yes,” draws far more scrutiny, and courts in different jurisdictions handle material changes differently. Your original answers stay in the record alongside any changes, and opposing counsel can use both at trial. Skipping the review entirely doesn’t invalidate the transcript. The deposition stands as recorded.
Challenging or Rescheduling the Subpoena
If the date or location doesn’t work, start with a phone call. The issuing attorney’s contact information is on the subpoena, and most will agree to reschedule if you reach out promptly and propose a reasonable alternative. That’s how most scheduling conflicts get resolved.
When informal contact fails, or when the subpoena is legally defective, you can file a motion to quash or a motion for a protective order. A court must quash or modify a subpoena that:
- Doesn’t allow reasonable time to comply.
- Requires a non-party to travel beyond the 100-mile limit.
- Demands privileged or otherwise protected material.
- Imposes an undue burden where compliance costs outweigh what the requesting party stands to gain.
File promptly. Waiting until the day before the deposition to raise objections will not go well.1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 45 – Subpoena State courts set their own rules with different deadlines and grounds, so if your subpoena came from a state court rather than a federal one, check the local rules or consult an attorney. Filing a motion does not automatically excuse you from appearing. Unless the court grants the motion or stays compliance, the subpoena remains in effect.