Indiana Subpoena
Indiana carries its own mile figure, and it is forty, not a hundred. The county line also decides whether you owe the witness anything at the moment of service. Attorney review available.
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Introduction
Indiana writes its own mile number into its own rule, and the number is forty. Trial Rule 45(D)(2) says an individual may be required to attend an examination only in the county where that person resides, is employed, or transacts business in person, or at another convenient place fixed by order of court. For someone who is not an Indiana resident but was served inside the state, the rule adds the forty: that person may be required to attend only in the state and county where served with a subpoena, or within forty miles from the place of service, or at another convenient place the court fixes. Anyone reaching for the hundred-mile figure is reading the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, not Indiana. The same county line decides the money. Trial Rule 45(G) requires tender of the fees for one day's attendance and the mileage allowed by law only when the person served will be required to attend outside his county of residence, and it excuses tender entirely to a subpoenaed party or to an officer, employee, agent, or representative of an organizational party being examined about their employment or duties. That tender then matters for enforcement, because Trial Rule 45(F) makes attachment available for witnesses duly subpoenaed to whom fees have been paid or tendered as required by law. The amounts are modest: five dollars for each day of attendance in court, plus mileage at the rate paid to state officers for each mile necessarily traveled to and from the court (Ind. Code 33-37-10-3). DocDraft prepares your Indiana subpoena from your case facts, with attorney review available before service.
Key Things to Know
- 1
An Indiana subpoena is court process that must state the name of the court, state the title of the action with the case number, and command each person to whom it is directed to attend and give testimony at a specified time and place (Ind. Trial Rule 45(A)(1)).
- 2
An Indiana resident may be required to attend an examination only in the county where that person resides, is employed, or transacts business in person, absent a court order fixing another convenient place (Ind. Trial Rule 45(D)(2)).
- 3
A nonresident served inside Indiana may be required to attend only in the state and county of service, or within forty miles from the place of service, or at another convenient place fixed by court order. Forty miles is Indiana's own figure (Ind. Trial Rule 45(D)(2)).
- 4
Tender of one day's attendance fees plus the mileage allowed by law is required when the person served will have to attend outside his county of residence, and is not required to a subpoenaed party or to an organizational party's officer, employee, agent, or representative examined on employment matters (Ind. Trial Rule 45(G)).
- 5
The Indiana civil witness fee is five dollars for each day of attendance in court, plus mileage at the rate paid to state officers for each mile necessarily traveled to and from the court (Ind. Code 33-37-10-3).
- 6
The state rate that figure points at is $0.64 per mile effective August 7, 2026, set by the Indiana Department of Administration and the State Budget Agency under Ind. Code 4-12-1-13 and 4-13-1-4, and reviewed each May.
- 7
The clerk issues an Indiana subpoena signed and sealed but otherwise in blank, and an attorney admitted in Indiana may issue and sign one as an officer of the court for a court where that attorney has appeared for a party (Ind. Trial Rule 45(A)(2)).
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Subpoena in Indiana, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Subpoena guide walks through them.
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Indiana Requirements for Subpoena
Witness Fee of $5 for Each Day in Court
A witness in the listed Indiana civil actions is entitled to five dollars for each day of attendance in court (Ind. Code 33-37-10-3(2)). A separate schedule in Ind. Code 33-37-10-2 covers witnesses summoned by the state in criminal actions.
Mileage at the Rate Paid to State Officers
Indiana pegs witness mileage rather than fixing it: an amount for mileage at the mileage rate paid to state officers for each mile necessarily traveled to and from the court (Ind. Code 33-37-10-3(1)). That rate is $0.64 per mile effective August 7, 2026, set by the Department of Administration and the State Budget Agency under Ind. Code 4-12-1-13 and 4-13-1-4, and reviewed each May.
Forty Miles for a Nonresident Served in Indiana
A nonresident of Indiana may be required to attend an examination only in the state and county where served with a subpoena, or within forty miles from the place of service, or at another convenient place fixed by order of court (Ind. Trial Rule 45(D)(2)). Forty is Indiana's own figure. The 100-mile rule is Fed. R. Civ. P. 45 and governs federal cases.
County Limit for an Indiana Resident
An individual may be required to attend an examination only in the county where he resides, is employed, or transacts his business in person, or at another convenient place fixed by order of court. A nonresident plaintiff may be required to attend at his own expense in the county where the action was commenced or a county the court fixes (Ind. Trial Rule 45(D)(2)).
Tender Owed Only Outside the Witness County
Service on a person who shall be required to attend outside his county of residence is made by delivering a copy and by so tendering the fees for one day of attendance and the mileage allowed by law. No tender is required to a subpoenaed party, or to an officer, employee, agent, or representative of an organizational party examined on a matter connected with employment or duties to the organization (Ind. Trial Rule 45(G)).
Clerk Issues It Blank, or an Indiana Attorney Signs
The clerk shall issue a subpoena, or one for the production of documentary evidence, signed and sealed but otherwise in blank, to the requesting party or that party's attorney, who fills it in before service. An attorney admitted in Indiana, as an officer of the court, may also issue and sign one for a court where that attorney has appeared for a party (Ind. Trial Rule 45(A)(2)).
Attachment Requires Fees Paid or Tendered
Failure without adequate excuse to obey a subpoena may be deemed contempt of the issuing court, or of the court of the county where the witness was required to appear or act. Attendance of witnesses duly subpoenaed, and to whom fees have been paid or tendered as required by law, may be enforced by attachment (Ind. Trial Rule 45(F)).
Service Costs Are Taxable Only for the Sheriff
A subpoena may be served by the sheriff or a deputy, by a party, or by any person, in the manner of Trial Rules 4.1, 4.16 and 5(B). A sheriff's return is proof of service and service by anyone else must be shown by affidavit. No fees or costs for service of a subpoena may be collected or charged as costs except when the sheriff or a deputy served it (Ind. Trial Rule 45(C), (H)).