Public Records and Subpoenas


Public Records Requests

Records requests under the California Public Records Act can be submitted via two methods.

Email: publicrecordsrequests@sjsu.edu

U.S. mail to:
San José State University
One Washington Square
San Jose, CA 95192-0002
Attention: Public Records Request

SJSU will acknowledge each request within 10 days and advise the requester whether or not records exist and may be disclosed.

SJSU will make public records available for inspection at no charge by arranging a mutually convenient time. If hard copies of records are desired, the CSU's direct cost of duplication for requests under the Public Records Act, established at 20 cents per page, will be collected. Different charges may apply to requests under other statutory authority. Records that already exist in an electronic format will be produced without charge.


Subpoena Guidelines

These guidelines have been established for receiving subpoenas at San José State University where SJSU is not a party to the proceeding. If SJSU is named as a party, the matter must be referred to the Office of General Counsel at the CSU Chancellor's Office.

A subpoena commands a person or entity to attend a hearing, trial or deposition at a particular time and place to testify as a witness and/or produce documents or other tangible objects in a legal proceeding. It is equivilant to a direct order from a court. SJSU must comply with all valid subpoenas.

"Appearance" Subpoena

An appearance subpoena requires the personal attendance of a witness. In most instances, a subpoena must be personally served on the witness required to appear. If the individual named in a subpoena is away from his or her work location when service is attempted, the process server should be advised to return at another time. Personal information about an employee will not be provided.

"Records Only" Subpoena

A records subpoena requires the production of documents. A subpoena for SJSU business records must be served on the "Custodian of Records." At SJSU, the custodian of all business records, for the purposes of this process, is the Office of the President. This office will request documents subject to subpoena from departments as necessary and will respond to the subpoena on behalf of SJSU.

Personal service of "Records Only" subpoenas should be directed to: 

Office of the President
San José State University
Clark Hall 555

Service will not be accepted by mail, fax, or email.

Questions about individual situations involving service of process or subpoenas should be directed to the Public Records Coordinator at airleah.sivila@sjsu.edu.

This information is a guide for the appropriate response to process servers. Questions about individual situations should be directed to the Public Records Coordinator at airleah.sivila@sjsu.edu.