(a) A party seeking production from a person not a party to the action shall give written notice to every other party of the intent to serve a subpoena at least twenty days before the date of service. A copy of the subpoena proposed to be served shall be attached to the notice.
Rule 4009.21.Subpoena Upon a Person Not a Party for Production of Documents and Things. Prior Notice. Objections.
Adopted April 7, 1997 · Last amended June 6, 2012 · Last verified June 30, 2026
In one sentenceTo obtain documents from a non-party by subpoena, a party must first give the other parties at least twenty days' written notice of its intent, and any party may object, which blocks service until the court resolves it.
Full Text of Rule 4009.21
(b) The written notice shall not be given to the person named in the sub- poena.
(c) Any party may object to the subpoena by filing of record written objec- tions and serving a copy of the objections upon every other party to the action.
(1) If objections are received by the party intending to serve the subpoena prior to its service, the subpoena shall not be served. The court upon motion shall rule upon the objections and enter an appropriate order.
(2) If objections are not received as provided in paragraph (1), the sub- poena may be served subject to the right of any party or interested person to seek a protective order.
Plain-English Summary
This rule builds a notice-and-objection step into a non-party document subpoena. Before serving a subpoena to produce documents on a person who is not a party, the party must give every other party written notice of its intent at least twenty days ahead — but not to the person named in the subpoena. Any party may object by filing written objections and serving them.
If objections arrive before the subpoena is served, it is not served, and the court resolves the dispute on motion; if none arrive, the subpoena may be served, still subject to a later protective order. The advance-notice mechanism lets the other parties head off an improper non-party subpoena before the non-party is drawn in.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you subpoena documents from a non-party?
Give the other parties at least twenty days' written notice of intent to serve the subpoena; if no one objects, the subpoena may then be served.
Can the other side object first?
Yes. If a party objects before service, the subpoena is not served until the court resolves the objection.
Official Note
Official Note: For the form of the written notice, see Rule 4009.24(a). These rules do not preclude (1) the issuance under Rule 234.1 et. seq. of a subpoena or request for the production of documents or things at a deposition pursuant to Rule 4007.1(d) or (2) an independent action against a person not a party for production of documents or things.
Official Note: For the form of the objections, see Rule 4009.24(b). The requirement of filing with the prothonotary the objections under this rule and the certifi- cate under Rule 4009.23(a) provides a more formal procedure for the participation of a person not a party in the discovery process.
Official Note: Subdivision (a) of this rule provides a twenty-day notice period during which a subpoena may not be served.
Official Note: Rule 4009.22(a) requires the filing of a certificate as a prerequisite to ser- vice. See Rule 4009.1 regarding electronically stored information.
Amendment History
The provisions of this Rule 4009.21 adopted April 7, 1997, effective July 1, 1997, 27 Pa.B. 1921; amended August 4, 1998, effective January 1, 1999, 28 Pa.B. 4175; amended June 6, 2012, effective August 1, 2012, 42 Pa.B. 3574. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (303602) and (247877).
Source & verification. Rule text, the Official Note, and the amendment
history are reproduced verbatim from the Pennsylvania Code, Title 231, the official compilation
of rules adopted by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Last verified June 30, 2026. ·
Official text
Also known as: non-party document subpoenasubpoena for production