I was involved in an accident a couple of months ago, and the at-fault driver was issued a ticket. I just received a subpoena to come to traffic court and testify. Do I have to go? Do I have anything to worry about?

First, you should always take seriously any subpoena issued by a Court or an Officer of the Court (ex. lawyer).  Under most circumstances, you will have to comply with the subpoena and appear in Court or before a Traffic Hearing officer, as requested.

If you have been subpoenaed to Traffic Court this most likely means that the other driver is contesting the ticket that he or she received.  The other driver is entitled to have a hearing, and to have the evidence against him presented to a judge or hearing officer — who will then decide if the facts of the accident meet the citation that was issued.

Your testimony may be critical to the State of Florida’s case against the other driver — particularly if there were no other eyewitnesses.  Law enforcement officers can only testify to the physical evidence that they found at the accident (unless they actually witnessed the accident), everything that is said to them is either hearsay or protected by a legal privilege.

While traffic ticket convictions are inadmissible in personal injury cases, they can sometimes be important to convincing insurance adjusters that their insureds were at fault, and that they should pay claims.

If you are subpoenad to a Traffic Hearing you should call your attorney and let him know.  He may be interested in attending the hearing and listening to the sworn testimony of the at-fault driver.  If you are not represented by a lawyer, you may want to call an experienced personal injury lawyer, who should be able to answer any questions that you might have.

If you have any questions please call us at 407-565-7386 or text us at 407-644-4444. We are always happy to offer a no-obligation, free consultation to discuss your case with you.