Louisiana § RS 13:3825 - Louisiana Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act

§ RS 13:3825. Louisiana Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act

A.  Short Title.  This Section may be cited as the "Louisiana Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act".

B.  Definitions.  In this Section:

(1)  "Foreign jurisdiction" means a state other than this state.

(2)  "Foreign subpoena" means a subpoena issued under authority of a court of record of a foreign jurisdiction.

(3)  "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government, or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or other legal or commercial entity.

(4)  "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.

(5)  "Subpoena" means a document, however denominated, issued under authority of a court of record requiring a person to do any of the following:

(a)  Attend and give testimony at a deposition.

(b)  Produce and permit inspection and copying of designated books, documents, records, electronically stored information, or tangible things in the possession, custody, or control of the person.

(c)  Permit inspection of premises under the control of the person.

C.  Issuance of Subpoena.  (1)  To request issuance of a subpoena under this Section, a party must present the original or a certified copy of a foreign subpoena to the clerk of court of the parish in which discovery is sought to be conducted in this state.  A request for the issuance of a subpoena under this Section does not constitute an appearance in the courts of this state.

(2)  When a party presents a foreign subpoena to a clerk of court in this state, the clerk, in accordance with that court's procedure, shall promptly issue a subpoena for service upon the person to which the foreign subpoena is directed.

(3)  A subpoena issued under Paragraph (2) of this Subsection must:

(a)  Identify the caption and case number of the out-of-state case to which it relates and incorporate the terms used in the foreign subpoena.

(b)  State the name of the court in this state which has issued it with an identifying number.

(c)  Contain or be accompanied by the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all counsel of record in the proceeding to which the subpoena relates and of any party not represented by counsel.

D.  Service of Subpoena.  A subpoena issued by a clerk of court under Subsection C of this Section must be served in compliance with the laws of this state, including Article 1355 of the Code of Civil Procedure.

E.  Deposition, Production, and Inspection.  The Code of Civil Procedure and any other laws or district court rules of this state governing a deposition, production of documents or other tangible items, or an inspection of premises apply to discovery under Subsection C of this Section.

F.  Application to Court.  An application to a court of this state for a protective order or for an order enforcing, quashing, or modifying a subpoena issued by a clerk of court under Subsection C of this Section must comply with the district court rules, the Code of Civil Procedure, and the Rules of Professional Conduct of this state and be submitted to the district court that issued the subpoena.

G.  Uniformity of Application and Construction.  In applying and construing this Section, consideration must be given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with respect to its subject matter among states that enact it.

Acts 2014, No. 793, §1; Acts 2014, No. 793, §1.