The State - News from Nov. 3, 1985

A state appeals court has declared unconstitutional a law that would make it a crime for a business to defy a subpoena from the state labor commissioner. In a 2-1 decision, the 1st District Court of Appeal said the law failed to provide an opportunity for a business to challenge the validity of a subpoena before deciding whether to comply. If the ruling stands, it will void the state’s principal means of forcing businesses to produce records in an investigation of their compliance with laws on wages, hours or working conditions. In the majority opinion, Justice M. O. Sabraw said a businessman who believed a subpoena was overbroad or sought material irrelevant to the commissioners’ investigation “must either surrender the material without any questions . . . or he must refuse to comply” and face criminal prosecution. Justice Marc Poches dissented, noting that when a subpoena is ignored, the labor commissioner must then obtain a court order seeking enforcement, and can then be challenged by the person against whom the subpoena is issued.