Serving Out-of-State Defendants & UIDDA Foreign Subpoenas in Arkansas (Rule 45.1)
Whether you are an out-of-state litigator needing to depose a witness or subpoena corporate records in Little Rock, Bentonville, or Lowell—or an Arkansas attorney serving an out-of-state defendant under Arkansas’s long-arm statute—cross-border service of process requires strict compliance with Arkansas Rule of Civil Procedure 45.1 (Arkansas’s adoption of the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act [UIDDA]) and Ark. R. Civ. P. 4(e).
Because Arkansas is home to major Fortune 500 corporate headquarters—including Walmart Inc. in Bentonville, J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. in Lowell, Tyson Foods in Springdale, Dillard’s and Stephens Inc. in Little Rock, and Murphy USA in El Dorado—our team domesticates and serves out-of-state UIDDA subpoenas across Arkansas every single day.
This guide provides a step-by-step roadmap for UIDDA foreign subpoena domestication in Arkansas and serving out-of-state civil summonses inside the Natural State.
1. How to Domesticate an Out-of-State Subpoena in Arkansas Under UIDDA (Ark. R. Civ. P. 45.1)
Adopted by the Arkansas Supreme Court as Arkansas Rule of Civil Procedure 45.1, the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act (UIDDA) allows an attorney litigating a civil case in another state (the “trial state”) to obtain an enforceable Arkansas subpoena without opening a miscellaneous civil action or hiring local Arkansas counsel (unless a contested motion to compel or quash is later filed).
Step-by-Step Arkansas Rule 45.1 Domestication Procedure
- Obtain the Foreign Subpoena from the Trial State: First, issue a valid subpoena under the rules of your home court (e.g., Texas, California, New York, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, or Missouri).
- Identify the Correct Arkansas County Circuit Clerk: Under Ark. R. Civ. P. 45.1(c)(1), the foreign subpoena must be submitted to the Circuit Clerk in the Arkansas county in which discovery is sought to be conducted (i.e., where the deponent resides or where the custodian of records / registered agent is located):
- For entities served via CT Corporation System or Corporation Service Company (CSC), submit to the Pulaski County Circuit Clerk (401 W. Markham St, Little Rock, AR 72201).
- For direct corporate legal intake at Walmart Inc. or J.B. Hunt Transport Services, submit to the Benton County Circuit Clerk (102 NE A St, Bentonville, AR 72712).
- For entities served via Northwest Registered Agent or Registered Agents Inc., submit to the Baxter County Circuit Clerk (1 E. 7th St, Mountain Home, AR 72653).
- Prepare the Conforming Arkansas Subpoena (
Rule 45.1(c)(2)): Prepare an Arkansas subpoena for signature and seal by the Circuit Clerk that:- Incorporates the exact terms used in the foreign subpoena;
- Contains or is accompanied by the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all counsel of record in the proceeding to which the subpoena relates, and of any party not represented by counsel; and
- Complies with the formatting requirements of Ark. R. Civ. P. 45.
- Clerk Issuance (Not a Appearance): Under Rule 45.1(c)(1), a request for the issuance of a subpoena under Rule 45.1 does not constitute an appearance in the courts of the State of Arkansas. Upon receipt of the foreign subpoena, the Arkansas subpoena form, and the clerk’s statutory issuance fee, the Circuit Clerk promptly issues the Arkansas subpoena for service.
- Service Under Ark. R. Civ. P. 45(c)–(d): Once issued by the Arkansas Circuit Clerk, the domesticated subpoena must be served in strict compliance with Ark. R. Civ. P. 45—including tendering the mandatory $30.00/day attendance fee plus $0.25/mile round-trip mileage if the subpoena commands personal attendance at a deposition!
2. Full-Service UIDDA Clerk Submission & Process Serving in Arkansas
Instead of mailing paper checks to rural Arkansas Circuit Clerks and waiting weeks for a stamped subpoena to be mailed back, Arkansas Process Service handles the entire UIDDA workflow for out-of-state law firms:
- Step 1: Upload your issued out-of-state subpoena and prepared Arkansas Rule 45.1 subpoena via our online order portal.
- Step 2: Our local courier presents the foreign subpoena to the appropriate Arkansas County Circuit Clerk (or submits via eFlex where accepted for miscellaneous UIDDA issuance), advances the clerk’s statutory issuance fee, and obtains the clerk-sealed Arkansas subpoena.
- Step 3: We immediately serve the domesticated subpoena on the target witness, hospital HIM department, or registered agent and email your firm the file-stamped subpoena and notarized Affidavit of Service.
3. Serving Out-of-State Lawsuits (Summons & Complaint) on Defendants in Arkansas
If you have filed a lawsuit in another state (or in any U.S. District Court) and need to serve a Summons and Complaint on an individual or corporate defendant located in Arkansas:
- You do not need UIDDA domestication (UIDDA applies only to subpoenas, not initial summonses and complaints).
- Most states’ long-arm service rules (as well as FRCP Rule 4(e)(1)) authorize out-of-state service to be made by either:
- Any non-party adult 18 years or older; or
- Any person authorized to serve process under the laws of the state where service is made (in Arkansas, an Administrative Order No. 20 court-appointed process server).
- Because our Arkansas servers hold Administrative Order No. 20 court appointments, our service satisfies even the strictest forum-state requirements (such as California, Texas, Florida, Illinois, and New York) and includes an Affidavit of Service tailored to your home court’s exact statutory language.
4. Serving Out-of-State Defendants in an Arkansas Lawsuit (Ark. R. Civ. P. 4(e))
Conversely, when an Arkansas plaintiff sues a nonresident defendant in an Arkansas Circuit Court under the Arkansas Long-Arm Statute (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-4-101) (which extends personal jurisdiction to the maximum limits permitted by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment):
- Under Ark. R. Civ. P. 4(e), service outside the State of Arkansas may be made:
- By personal delivery in the same manner prescribed for service within Arkansas (
Rule 4(f)), executed by any person authorized to make service by the law of the jurisdiction where the defendant is served (Rule 4(c)(3)); - By certified mail or commercial delivery company (
Rule 4(g)(1)–(2)); - Pursuant to the Hague Service Convention or letters rogatory for international defendants (
Rule 4(e)(3)–(4)); or - As directed by the court under
Rule 4(g)(4).
- By personal delivery in the same manner prescribed for service within Arkansas (
Need a foreign UIDDA subpoena domesticated or an out-of-state summons served in Arkansas? Submit your UIDDA or out-of-state order online or call (501) 472-8315.
Ready to serve your legal documents? Submit your Arkansas service order online now → or call (501) 472-8315 for immediate dispatch anywhere in Arkansas.