CAO 98-02CITY OF MIAMI BEACH
TO:
FROM:
SERGIO RODRIGUEZ
CITY MANAGER
MURRAY H. DUBBIN
CITY ATTORNEY ~
DATE: FEBRUARY20, 1998
CAO #98-2: SUBPOENAS ISSUED TO POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR
PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS - ALLOWABLE COSTS.
Pursuant to your request, I researched the issue of whether a City department may charge a
plaintiff in a lawsuit for the cost of reproducing records pursuant to a subpoena. As is explained
more fully below, the cost of copies made by a City department may be assessed against the
requesting party.
Florida Rules of Civil Procedure 1.351 entitled "Production of Documents and Things
Without Deposition" states in relevant part:
· .. the person upon whom the subpoena is served may condition the
preparation of copies on the payment in advance of the reasonable
costs of preparing the copies ....
Accordingly, when a City deparhnent has been served with a subpoena in a lawsuit filed in the Slate
Circuit court, that Deparhtaent may, prior to producing the requested copies, demand payment for
the costs of preparing said copies. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure do not similarly authorize
a party to require payment for copies in advance of production of documents -- therefore such costs
may not be recovered in Federal Court cases.
,IKO:sct:jean"A'\98-2.cao
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