Criminal Defense Lawyers

10 Days to Respond to Federal Subpoena

Last Updated on: 14th November 2025, 12:50 am

Welcome to our website. This article is about helping you figure out how to respond to a federal subpoena. You’re likely reading this blog post because you just got a federal subpoena. FBI, SEC, IRS – doesn’t matter, you’re panicking. At Spodek Law Group – we are no stranger to federal defense cases, and subpoena’s. There are many agencies that can issue one. Bottom line – they all must be responded to. You cannot ignore it. You cannot pretend you didn’t get it in the mail. This is an important document.

The document says “10 days to respond” but Google says “14 days under Rule 45.” Which applies to YOU? Miscalculate this deadline, you’re looking at contempt. Comply without understanding your rights, you could hand over privileged material. Todd Spodek – a second-generation criminal defense attorney with over 40 years of combined experience (his father’s practice plus his own) – has defended clients in your exact situation many, many, times. Our law firm represented Anna Delvey in her high-profile federal case, handled by Todd personally, which became a Netflix series. Your real deadline and actual options – broken down.

Calculating Your Real Deadline (It’s Not What Google Says)

You searched “10 days to respond to federal subpoena” – but your subpoena might say 7 days, 10 days, 14 days, or 21 days depending on WHO issued it. This is the trap everyone’s falling into. The internet uniformly cites “Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45” which says 14 days. That’s true for civil court subpoenas, but irregardless of what Rule 45 says, if you got your subpoena from the FBI, SEC, or IRS, you’re probably dealing with an administrative agency subpoena – which commonly use 10-14 day deadlines, not the Rule 45 standard. Grand jury subpoenas often demand appearance and/or production in 7-10 days. Different types, different deadlines. Read YOUR specific subpoena – the deadline is printed right there on the document, that’s what’s controlling irregardless of what generic legal websites say.

The calculation is where people screw up, and it costs them. Let’s say your subpoena says “10 days from service” and you were served Monday, November 13th. When’s your deadline? Most people think November 23rd, counting Monday as Day 1. Wrong. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 6(a) says you EXCLUDE the day of service and start counting the next day, which means if you got served on a Monday, that Monday don’t count. So if served Monday November 13th, Day 1 is Tuesday November 14th. Count 10 calendar days – weekends count, holidays count – so Day 10 is Thursday November 23rd. But November 23rd is Thanksgiving, a legal holiday. Your deadline extends to Friday November 24th. One miscalculation, you miss the deadline entirely, and we’ve seen judges who won’t accept “I counted wrong” as an excuse. This is why you need someone who’s been handling this many, many, times – not trying and figure it out yourself with Google.

A subpoena is NOT a search warrant – people don’t understand this distinction. Search warrants require probable cause, agents show up immediately, no advance notice, evidence seized on the spot. Subpoena = deadline to respond, advance notice, you can object, you can negotiate. If you received a subpoena, FBI isn’t raiding your office tomorrow. You have TIME to respond through an attorney, review documents, assert privileges. Don’t panic like this is a raid.

Three Response Options (And Which One Prosecutors Negotiate On)

You think your choices are binary: comply fully or refuse and face contempt. Wrong. You got three realistic options, and which one you choose depends on what kind of subpoena you’re dealing with, what they’re asking for, and whether you got privileged material mixed in with what they want.

Full compliance works when scope is narrow, documents readily available, no privileged material. If they want three specific contracts from 2024, produce them. But “all emails from 2020-2025” with a 10-day deadline? Impossibly expensive, probably includes privileged communications you should of protected, might be tens of thousands of documents.

Negotiation is where most people don’t know what’s possible. We’ve negotiated hundreds of subpoena modifications in the Southern District of New York, Eastern District of New York, and nationwide. Prosecutors routinely accept scope limitations and deadline extensions when you’re requesting them properly. Success rate is 60-70%. “I need more time because I’m busy” – rejected. “Production of 50,000 emails spanning 5 years within 10 days is unduly burdensome per Rule 45(d)(3)(A)(iv); we propose rolling production starting with 2024 emails within 14 days, remainder within 30 days” – accepted. Prosecutors want compliance, not litigation. Unlike other law firms who just tell you to comply, we negotiate scope reductions that save time and money.

Formal objection is aggressive, expensive, prosecutors may view it as obstruction. Only works when subpoena is genuinely overbroad or violates your rights in ways negotiation won’t fix.

The Fifth Amendment Trap (Documents vs. Testimony)

The Fifth Amendment – everyone gets this wrong. You’re thinking “I’ll just take the Fifth and refuse to produce anything.” Doesn’t work that way. The Fifth Amendment protects you from testifying against yourself, but it generally does NOT protect pre-existing documents. If the FBI subpoenas your emails, you can’t refuse on Fifth Amendment grounds – those documents already exist, producing them isn’t “testimony” (Fisher v. United States established this). For most document subpoenas (subpoena duces tecum), Fifth Amendment won’t help you. You need DIFFERENT grounds: attorney-client privilege, work product, undue burden. But if you’re subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury (subpoena ad testificandum), you CAN assert Fifth Amendment on each question – but you still must APPEAR. You can’t refuse to show up, only refuse to answer specific questions. Understand this distinction or you’re going to waste time asserting protections that don’t apply.

Asserting privilege? Can’t just say “it’s privileged.” Federal courts require a privilege log: document-by-document list with date, author, recipient, subject, privilege asserted. Takes 40-60 attorney hours for 500 documents. Must be done BY THE DEADLINE, irregardless of how much work it is.

Electronic documents? Can’t just forward emails. Federal courts expect native format with metadata preserved – timestamps, routing info, attachments. Forwarding copies doesn’t comply due to the fact that metadata gets stripped when you forward. Requires e-discovery vendors, costs $5,000-$50,000. Prosecutors will object to deficient production, and they’re gonna know it’s deficient.

Catastrophic Mistakes We’ve Seen (And What They Cost)

Client handled the subpoena himself. SEC subpoenaed “all communications regarding the transaction.” He searched Gmail, forwarded 47 emails. SEC’s forensic review found 300+ responsive emails he didn’t produce – including deleted emails. Original investigation was civil enforcement. After deficient production, SEC referred case to DOJ for criminal obstruction. Misdemeanor became a felony because he didn’t understand metadata preservation.

Client asserted Fifth Amendment for documents. Grand jury subpoenaed bank records (subpoena duces tecum). He refused, citing Fifth Amendment. Court rejected it – pre-existing documents aren’t testimonial. Held in contempt. Jailed for 30 days until he produced them, then faced criminal contempt charges. Documents he eventually had to produce anyways – but now he’s got a contempt record and prosecutors view him as uncooperative, destroying any chance of a favorable resolution.

Client miscounted the deadline by one day. Counted day of service as Day 1. Submitted response on what he thought was Day 10 – was actually Day 11. SDNY prosecutor filed motion to compel same day. Judge ordered full compliance within 48 hours plus prosecutor’s fees ($8,500). Client paid $15,000 for rush e-discovery. Total cost of one-day error: $23,500.

If You Miss the Deadline: Civil vs. Grand Jury (Completely Different Timelines)

You’re panicking thinking the FBI’s gonna arrest you tomorrow, which is what most people think when they miss a deadline. Reality depends on subpoena type, and the difference between these two is massive.

Civil document subpoena: Issuing party files motion to compel. You get 14 days to respond. Court schedules hearing (2-4 weeks out). Judge orders compliance. If you still don’t comply, THEN contempt proceedings begin under 18 U.S.C. § 401. Takes WEEKS, sometimes months. Multiple chances to cure. If you missed a civil subpoena yesterday, you got time to fix this with an attorney – but don’t wait, because every day makes the judge less sympathetic.

Grand jury testimony subpoena: Fail to appear, court issues bench warrant IMMEDIATELY. Same day, sometimes within hours. Arrested wherever you are. No motion, no 14-day response, no hearing first. Grand jury contempt is swift due to the fact that you’re obstructing an active criminal investigation. Missed a grand jury appearance? Get an attorney NOW – there may already be a warrant out, and we’ve seen clients arrested at home within 6 hours.

Your 10-Day Action Plan (Day by Day)

You got 10 days. Today is Day 1.

Days 1-2: Contact a criminal defense attorney with federal experience immediately. Attorney reviews type, calculates your real deadline per Rule 6(a), assesses scope, identifies privileges. Every day you wait is a day lost.

Days 3-5: Attorney negotiates with prosecutor on scope and timing. This is where that 60-70% success rate comes from. Attorney articulates proper grounds, proposes reasonable alternatives.

Days 6-9: Document collection, privilege review, production preparation. Forensic e-discovery, privilege logs, finalizing response. Can’t do this on Day 9.

Day 10: Compliance filed. Must be submitted by end of business, irregardless of whether you’re ready.

What NOT to do: Don’t ignore it. Don’t handle it yourself. Don’t forward emails thinking that’s compliance. Don’t assert the Fifth for document production. Don’t wait until Day 8. Don’t assume “delete” means gone.

Our criminal defense attorneys have many, many, years of combined experience negotiating with federal prosecutors – from the Southern District of New York, to the Eastern District of New York, to nationwide. We know what prosecutors accept and what they’re going reject before you ask. We’ve handled subpoenas in high-profile cases – including defending clients like Anna Delvey and Ghislaine Maxwell where massive document requests had to be managed strategically under intense time pressure. Irregardless of what you’re being investigated for, you need experienced counsel who understands federal procedure. Your 10-day deadline is ticking while you’re reading this article. We’re available 24/7 at 212-300-5196 – federal subpoena deadlines don’t wait for business hours, and neither do we. Call us now before you lose another day, or before you make a mistake that turns a manageable subpoena response into a contempt proceeding and/or criminal obstruction charge.