Subpoena Procedures

General Procedures

1. All subpoenas that are related to University matters or University employees or students acting on behalf of the University are to be directed to and served per the requirements of the applicable civil or criminal rule of procedure upon:

   General Counsel
   Office of Legal Affairs
   John Carroll University
   Rodman Hall, Room 115
   1 John Carroll Boulevard
   University Heights, OH 44118
   Phone: (216) 397-1590

2. If a subpoena is attempted to be served or accepted by any other University department or office, University staff is expected to contact the Office of Legal Affairs immediately and forward the date-stamped subpoena and envelope to the Office of Legal Affairs as soon as possible to determine the validity of the subpoena and comply with the request.
3. The University accepts and complies with all valid federal and Ohio criminal and civil subpoenas. Out-of-state subpoenas are not enforceable in Ohio and are not accepted or complied with by the University.
4. The Office of Legal Affairs does not accept subpoenas that are of a personal nature. Individually named subpoenas will need to be served and signed by the actual individual to which the subpoena is addressed. The University is a private institution, and personal subpoenas may not be served upon University employees on University property. Process servers should contact the Office of Legal Affairs or John Carroll University Police Department, as applicable, regarding service of process upon students.

Responding to Subpoenas

1. Most subpoenas received by the University only require the production of records, known as a subpoena duces tecum.
2. Once the Office of Legal Affairs has determined the validity of a subpoena duces tecum, a member of the office will contact the University department or office in which the responsive documents are held in order to arrange for the production of records.
3. Please note that the University is bound to follow privacy and confidentiality safeguards imposed by federal and state laws in certain instances prior to the release or disclosure of any records. As to student educational records, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) requires notice to the student in most instances prior to the production of educational records.

Fees for Production of Business Records

The University is entitled to all reasonable costs incurred for producing business records in response to a subpoena duces tecum. In addition to a $20 administrative fee for responding to all civil subpoenas, the University generally charges the following reasonable costs:

1. Ten cents ($0.10) per page for standard reproduction of documents of a size, 8-1/2 x 14 inches or less;
2. Twenty cents ($0.20) per page for copying documents from microfilm;
3. Actual costs for reproduction of oversize documents or the reproduction of documents requiring special processing which are made in response to a subpoena;
4. Actual costs of information technology media such as disks and flash drives on which electronic data is produced;
5. Actual costs, if any, charged to the University by a “third person” for the retrieval and return of records held by that “third person;”
6. Actual costs, if any, of special delivery charges including, but not limited to, courier service fees, overnight mailing services, etc.