(1) “Foreign jurisdiction” means a state other than this state.
(2) “Foreign subpoena” means a subpoena issued under authority of a court of record of a foreign jurisdiction.
(3) “Person” means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government, or governmental subdivision, agency or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity.
(4) “State” means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, a federally recognized Indian tribe, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
(5) “Subpoena” means a document, however denominated, issued under authority of a court of record requiring a person to:
(A) attend and give testimony at a deposition;
(B) produce and permit inspection and copying of designated books, documents, records, electronically stored information, or tangible things in the possession, custody, or control of the person; or
(C) permit inspection of premises under the control of the person.
(b) Issuance of Subpoena.
(1) To request issuance of a subpoena under this section, a party must submit a foreign subpoena to the clerk of court for any judicial district to conduct discovery in this state. A request for the issuance of a subpoena under this rule does not constitute an appearance in the courts of this state.
(2) When a party submits a foreign subpoena to a clerk of court in this state, 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.
(3) A subpoena under paragraph (b)(2) must:
(A) incorporate the terms used in the foreign subpoena; and
(B) 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.
(c) Service of Subpoena. A subpoena issued by a clerk of court under subsection (b) must be served in compliance with Civil Rule 45(c).
(d) Deposition, Production, and Inspection. The Alaska Civil Deposition and Discovery Rules, Civil Rules 26 to 37, apply to subpoenas issued under subsection (b).
(e) Application to Court. An application to the court for a protective order or to enforce, quash, or modify a subpoena issued by a clerk of court under subsection (b) must comply with the rules or statutes of this state and be submitted to the court location in Alaska from which the subpoena issued.
(Adopted by SCO 1853 effective October 15, 2015)
A party holding a subpoena issued by a court in another state, the District of Columbia, a U.S. territory, or a federally recognized tribe can submit it to the clerk of any Alaska judicial district to obtain discovery here; doing so doesn't count as appearing in an Alaska court. The clerk promptly issues an Alaska subpoena that carries over the terms of the original one and includes contact information for all counsel of record and any unrepresented parties, and it's served the same way as any other Alaska subpoena. Once issued, the deposition and discovery proceed under Alaska's own discovery rules, and any request for a protective order, or to enforce, quash, or modify the subpoena, goes to the Alaska court that issued it.