Motion to quash a state to state subpoena

[gwestmark]

Looking for some advice here obviously...

I reside in Princeton, MN and recently voluntarily went to a deposition in Birmingham, AL where a landlord and my previous employer are locked in a high stakes lawsuit and countersuit involving breach of contract that has nothing to do with me personally, however, due to my longevity with the company I had detailed information regarding their operations relevant to the lawsuit. My information was not favorable to my previous employer.

The deposition lasted about 6 hours (I may add I never wish to go through that again!).

During the course of the deposition I was served with a subpoena to appear at the trial in mid July, by my previous employer.

I have a fairly high position in the company I currently work for and being forced to go back to Birmingham in mid July (a very busy season for us) is going to cause considerable hardship on my company and myself as travel is quite extensive between the two states.

My questions are:

1) Is this subpoena enforceable between the two states;

2) If I hire an attorney to file a motion to quash this subpoena, what are the chances of it succeeding?

Thanks in advance for any assistance!

 

[dee_dub]

If MN is anything like my jurisdiction (Canada), I don't like your chances of getting the subpoena quashed. But courts are reasonable about what they will make you do to comply. I would consult with a local litigator. By default, an order from one state is not enforceable in another, but many jurisdictions have reciprocal enforecement acts. Even if MN and AL do not, the party in Alabama could always apply to the MN court for assistance. Depending on the AL rules of civil procedure, it might be possible to simply have your deposition evidence read in at trial, submit answers to written interrogatories, or appear to give testimony via telephone.