I’ve been subpoenaed by a grand jury as a “business representative.” What should I do?
At a Glance
Most of the time, a subpoena to a business representative is about handing over records or testifying on the company’s behalf, not about facing charges yourself. But if you’re the custodian of records, the CEO, or the president, that role can put more personal criminal liability on your shoulders. Talk to a criminal defense lawyer before you respond, so you know exactly what status you’re responding in, comply the right way to avoid an obstruction charge, and make sure you’re a witness and not a target.
If you’ve been subpoenaed to a grand jury as a business representative your role is a little bit different; you’re simply there it testify on behalf of the business and in most cases you’re there to provide documents or records of the business to the grand jury.
However, I would consult with a criminal defense attorney to discuss the subpoena to see what role you have in the business; are you simply a records custodian, are you the CEO or president of that business? Could you be the subject or the target of that criminal investigation?
So sometimes that role as the business records custodian or the business representative can bleed over and subject you to some criminal liability and so you want to make sure that you know all of your rights that you have and consult with a criminal defense attorney. But, also it’s critical that you comply with the subpoena if they’re asking for records in a thorough and proper manner and an attorney can help you do that because you wouldn’t want to be accused later on of obstructing justice because you didn’t comply with the subpoena in a proper way.
So if you’ve been subpoenaed as a business representative to provide records or testimony, I would suggest that you consult a criminal defense attorney to help you, guide you, through that process to make sure you’re only there as a business representative and not as a potential defendant.