Wyoming Subpoena
Wyoming writes a floor rather than a fee: $10.00 a day minimum and $5.00 for half a day, with mileage set by the governor and capped at the IRS nontaxable rate. Attorney review available.
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Introduction
Read Wyo. Stat. Section 1-14-102 carefully and the first thing you notice is the word minimum. Witnesses are entitled to receive the following minimum fees, the statute says, and then lists ten dollars ($10.00) per day and five dollars ($5.00) for half a day for attending before any court or grand jury, or before any judge, referee or commissioner. That is a floor the court can exceed, not a rate to copy. The travel line is even less fixed: mileage at the rate set in W.S. 9-3-103 for each mile actually and necessarily traveled in going to and returning from the place of attendance, and Section 9-3-103(a)(iii) then says private vehicle reimbursement is whatever the governor determines, based on a mileage allowance not to exceed the maximum nontaxable rates allowed by the Internal Revenue Service at the time of travel. The sharpest rule, though, belongs to the witness. Under Section 1-12-105, after the case is called for trial and before being sworn, a witness may demand traveling fees and fees for one day's attendance, and if the fees are not paid the witness is not obliged to testify. Each morning after the first the demand can be repeated, and if that day's fees go unpaid the witness shall not be compelled to remain. Section 1-12-106 then carves that refusal out of contempt entirely. A Wyoming subpoena is only as strong as the money attached to it. DocDraft drafts yours from the Rule 45 content requirements, with attorney review available before service.
Key Things to Know
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A Wyoming subpoena is a command issued from the court for the district where the action is pending, stating the title of the action and its civil action number and directing a named person to attend and testify, to produce and permit inspection of designated documents, electronically stored information or tangible things, or to permit inspection of premises.
- 2
Wyoming sets minimum fees rather than a fixed rate: ten dollars ($10.00) per day and five dollars ($5.00) for half a day for attending before any court or grand jury, or before any judge, referee or commissioner (Wyo. Stat. Section 1-14-102(a)(i)).
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Mileage is paid at the rate set in W.S. 9-3-103 for each mile actually and necessarily traveled in going to and returning from the place of attendance, so it is a round-trip figure (Section 1-14-102(a)(iii)).
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Wyoming's code names no cents-per-mile number. For private vehicle travel, Section 9-3-103(a)(iii) makes the reimbursement whatever the governor determines, based on a mileage allowance not to exceed the maximum nontaxable rates allowed by the Internal Revenue Service at the time of travel.
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A qualified expert whose expert testimony is admitted as evidence is allowed witness fees of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) per day or such other amount as the court allows, chargeable as costs or apportioned among parties (Section 1-14-102(b)).
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After the case is called for trial and before being sworn, a Wyoming witness may demand traveling fees and one day's attendance fees, and if they are not paid the witness is not obliged to testify (Section 1-12-105).
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No witness may receive fees or mileage in more than one case covering the same period of time or the same travel, and each witness must make affidavit that the fees and mileage claimed have not been claimed or received in any other case (Section 1-14-103).
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Subpoena in Wyoming, 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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Wyoming Requirements for Subpoena
Minimum Fees of $10 a Day and $5 a Half Day
Wyo. Stat. Section 1-14-102(a) states that witnesses are entitled to receive the following minimum fees, then sets ten dollars ($10.00) per day and five dollars ($5.00) for half a day for attending before any court or grand jury, or before any judge, referee or commissioner. These are a floor the court may exceed, not a fixed rate.
Mileage Set by the Governor, Capped at the IRS Rate
Mileage is paid at the rate set in W.S. 9-3-103 for each mile actually and necessarily traveled in going to and returning from the place of attendance, so it is round trip (Section 1-14-102(a)(iii)). For private vehicle travel, Section 9-3-103(a)(iii) makes reimbursement whatever the governor determines, based on a mileage allowance not to exceed the maximum nontaxable rates allowed by the Internal Revenue Service at the time of travel.
Expert Witnesses at $25 a Day or More
In any civil or criminal case, a witness the court finds to be a qualified expert whose expert testimony is admitted as evidence is allowed witness fees of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) per day or such other amount as the court allows according to the circumstances, chargeable as costs against any party or apportioned among parties (Section 1-14-102(b)).
The Witness Can Demand Fees Before Being Sworn
After the case is called for trial and before being sworn, a witness may demand traveling fees and fees for one day of attendance, and if they are not paid the witness is not obliged to testify. The demand may be repeated at the start of each later day, and unpaid fees mean the witness shall not be compelled to remain (Section 1-12-105).
Unpaid Fees Are a Defense to Contempt
Section 1-12-106 punishes disobedience of a subpoena and refusal to answer as contempt, but expressly excepts refusal to be sworn for refusal to pay fees on demand. A Wyoming witness who declines the oath over unpaid demanded fees is outside that provision.
Out-of-County Witnesses Get the State Per Diem After Trial
Wyo. R. Civ. P. 45(b)(1) requires the party subpoenaing a witness who resides in a county other than the one where the action is pending to pay that witness, after the hearing or trial, the statutory per diem allowance for state employees for each day or part of a day necessarily spent traveling to and from court and in attendance. That is on top of the tender at service.
Statewide for Trial, County-Limited for a Deposition
A subpoena for trial or hearing may require appearance irrespective of the person's residence, employment or regular in-person business (Rule 45(b)(3)). A deposition may be required only in the county where the person resides, is employed or regularly transacts business, or for a nonresident the county of service (Rule 45(b)(4)). Rule 45(c)(3)(B)(iii) addresses a non-party facing substantial travel expense for trial.
Single Fee, Sworn Affidavit, and Immunity While Traveling
No witness may receive fees or mileage in more than one case covering the same period of time or the same travel, and each witness must make affidavit that the fees and mileage claimed have not been claimed or received in any other case (Section 1-14-103). A witness may not be served with a summons or sued in a county where the witness does not reside while going, returning or attending in obedience to a subpoena (Section 1-12-113).