California Business Records Subpoena: Three Clocks, Not One
Not legal advice. Rules checked against the code on August 20, 2026. Verify every date yourself. Read the full disclaimer
Core CCP rules were checked against Westlaw (via CoCounsel legal research) on August 20, 2026. County local rules are paraphrased summaries; individual department standing orders are NOT included. Verify every date against the operative code sections and your court’s rules before relying on it. Using this site creates no attorney-client relationship.
A subpoena for a consumer’s personal records or an employee’s employment records runs three separate clocks, and satisfying one does not satisfy the others. Two run backward from the production date. The third runs forward from the date the subpoena issued, which is the one people get wrong.
Your dates
Three clocks, not one
A business records subpoena for consumer or employee records runs three separate clocks, and the extension language IS express here, unlike the deposition notice period. Serve the record subject at least 10 days before production, serve them at least 5 days before you serve the custodian, and if you are the subpoenaing party the deposition must be set at least 20 days after issuance. CCP §§ 1985.3(b), 1985.6(b), 2025.270(c).
The three clocks
- Ten days before production. Serve the consumer or employee with the subpoena, any supporting affidavit and the statutory notice not less than 10 days before the production date, plus the CCP 1013 extension if service is by mail. The notice must be in a typeface designed to call attention to it.
- Five days before the custodian. The record subject must be served at least 5 days before you serve the custodian of records, again plus the 1013 extension. Serving the custodian too early is an independent defect.
- Twenty days from issuance. If you are the subpoenaing party and the deponent is commanded to produce consumer or employee records, the deposition must be set at least 20 days after issuance of the subpoena (CCP 2025.270(c)). Not service. Issuance.
Why the extension is not ambiguous here
On a deposition notice, whether CCP 1013 lengthens the 10-day period is genuinely unsettled, and the deposition calculator shows both dates for that reason. Here the Legislature wrote the extension into the statute: CCP 1985.3(b) and 1985.6(b) both say the period is increased by the additional time provided by section 1013 if service is by mail. That contrast is itself the strongest argument that the omission from 2025.270 was deliberate.
Working backward means the extension costs you time
This is the direction-of-extension point, and it reverses here. On a response deadline, mail service gives you more time. On a notice period counted backward from a fixed production date, the extension moves your deadline earlier. Mailing the consumer notice does not buy you five days; it costs you five.
FAQ
How many days notice for a deposition subpoena for business records?
Serve the consumer or employee with a copy of the subpoena, any supporting affidavit and the statutory notice not less than 10 days before the production date, plus the additional time under CCP 1013 if service is by mail. Unlike the deposition notice period in CCP 2025.270, the 1013 extension is written into CCP 1985.3(b) and 1985.6(b) expressly, so there is no ambiguity here.
How long before serving the custodian must you serve the consumer?
At least 5 days, plus the CCP 1013 extension if by mail. This is the clock most people miss: serving the custodian too early is an independent defect even if the 10-day production notice was fine, and it is a sufficient basis for the custodian to refuse to produce.
Does the 20-day rule run from service or from issuance?
From issuance. Where you are the subpoenaing party and the deponent is commanded to produce personal records of a consumer or employment records of an employee, the deposition must be scheduled at least 20 days after issuance of the subpoena (CCP 2025.270(c)). It is a separate requirement from the 10-day consumer notice and both must be satisfied.
What is the California subpoena objection deadline?
A consumer may serve a written objection on the subpoenaing party, the witness and the deposition officer at any time before the production date, stating the specific grounds (CCP 1985.3(g)). Once a written objection arrives, no production is required absent a court order or an agreement. An employee instead moves to quash or modify under CCP 1987.1 before the production date, with notice to the witness and the deposition officer at least 5 days before production.
What is the deadline to move to enforce a records subpoena after an objection?
Twenty days from service of the written objection, by motion under CCP 1987.1, with a declaration showing a reasonable and good faith attempt at informal resolution. Note separately that the 60-day limit in CCP 2025.480(b) applies to business records subpoenas as well, because records-only discovery is a deposition.
Related: Deposition notice deadlines · Requests for production · Discovery cutoff & trial deadlines