The Subpoena, Explained
It may well be the case that the average person working for a private employer is more likely to get hit by lightning than served with a subpoena. For public employees, especially police officers and teachers, it might even be a frequent occurrence.
A subpoena is simply a court order requiring someone to appear for a hearing or produce certain documents, or both. Trial and depositions are the two most common types of court hearings, the latter being an on-the-record interview conducted by counsel. An employee getting subpoenaed may mean that their employer is party to a lawsuit. Public employees, however, are more frequently called on to testify in matters to which their employer is not a party, for example in the case of a public school teacher subpoenaed to testify in a family dispute regarding one of their students.
So You’ve Been Served
It can be daunting for an employee to be served with a subpoena requiring them to testify and produce materials that are potentially detrimental to their employer’s position in an ongoing court case. They may fear retaliation for complying with the subpoena and giving a full account in their testimony. They may worry about being disciplined or fired because of having to miss work in order to show up for a hearing. Fortunately, subpoenaed witnesses are protected with regard to their employment by Florida statute, specifically Section 92.57, Florida Statutes, the text of which reads:
“A person who testifies in a judicial proceeding in response to a subpoena may not be dismissed from employment because of the nature of the person’s testimony or because of absences from employment resulting from compliance with the subpoena. In any civil action arising out of a violation of this section, the court may award attorney’s fees and punitive damages to the person unlawfully dismissed, in addition to actual damages suffered by such person.”
In other words, a witness cannot lawfully be fired for their testimony or for missing work to comply with a subpoena, and the court may award damages to an unlawfully terminated employee.
Contact Us
If an employee feels that they are at risk of retaliation for complying with a subpoena, then they may wish to contact an experienced employment attorney for advice on how best to protect themselves the available legal remedies are available. We at Fernee Kelly Law have expertise in this and many other subjects in the area of employment and labor law. We are well prepared to offer focused advice and aggressively pursue a favorable outcome by formal avenues if need be.