Short answer: Facebook is Meta Platforms, Inc., its California registered agent is in Sacramento, and your out-of-state subpoena must be domesticated in a California court before it has any force.
We are a Registered California Process Server (2024-027) in Sacramento. Meta’s agent is about ten minutes from our office. We domesticate the subpoena and serve it. $395 flat.
Exactly Who You Serve
Entity: Meta Platforms, Inc. (formerly Facebook, Inc.). Registered agent for service of process in California:
Corporation Service Company (CSC), 2710 Gateway Oaks Drive, Suite 150N, Sacramento, CA 95833
Why so many Facebook subpoenas fail
- Wrong entity. “Facebook, Inc.” ceased to exist in 2021. Caption it Meta Platforms, Inc.
- Never domesticated. An out-of-state subpoena is not California process until a California court issues it.
- Mailed to Menlo Park. Meta states it will not respond to correspondence sent by non–law-enforcement to its corporate address.
- Asking for content. Meta requires a search warrant for the contents of any account — unavailable to a civil litigant.
Meta publishes no civil-subpoena guidance whatsoever. Its law-enforcement guidelines expressly exclude private parties and route them to a Help Center page that loops straight back. Civil litigants are left to figure it out, and most get it wrong.
What Records You Can Actually Get
Facebook subpoenas show up most often in defamation, harassment, family law, and business disputes — and nearly always to answer one question: who is actually behind this account?
- Subscriber and registration information — name given, email, phone, account creation date
- IP address logs with timestamps — the evidence that unmasks an anonymous account
- Account status and login history
What you cannot get. The federal Stored Communications Act (18 U.S.C. §§ 2701–2712) bars providers from disclosing the contents of communications to civil litigants. No subpoena, however well drafted, will get you private messages. Meta requires a search warrant for the stored contents of an account. In plain terms: no messages, no deleted posts, no photos in a civil case. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling you something.
How Domestication Actually Works in California
California adopted the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act at Code of Civil Procedure sections 2029.100 through 2029.900. You do not need California counsel, and you do not open a miscellaneous case.
- Submit the foreign subpoena to the clerk of the Superior Court in the county where discovery takes place — for CSC, that is Sacramento County.
- File Form SUBP-030 (Application for Discovery Subpoena in an Action Pending Outside California) with the correct California subpoena: SUBP-035 for business records, SUBP-040 for personal appearance, or SUBP-045 for both.
- The clerk issues a California subpoena mirroring your out-of-state subpoena. Court filing fee: $45.
- The California subpoena is served under California rules — on Meta’s registered agent.
The Trap That Voids Most Out-of-State Subpoenas
Code of Civil Procedure section 1985.3 — the Notice to Consumer. If you are seeking records about an individual, you must serve that person (or their attorney) with the subpoena and a Notice to Consumer before the custodian is served — at least 5 days before, and at least 10 days before the production date. Miss it and your subpoena is defective, and the custodian may refuse.
Out-of-state attorneys blow this constantly, because their home state has no equivalent. We handle the notice and prove it up.
Under section 2020.410(c), the production date cannot be earlier than 20 days after the subpoena is issued or 15 days after it is served, whichever is later. Calendar the later one.
What It Costs
$395 flat — domestication and service, 5 business days. $495 flat — rush, 3 business days.
Includes SUBP-030 and subpoena preparation, filing at the Sacramento Superior Court clerk, the $45 court filing fee (advanced), the $15 witness fee for business records, service on the registered agent, and a signed Proof of Service formatted for filing in California and in your home state court.
Most competitors will not put a number on this page. That is exactly why we do.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I subpoena Facebook messages in a divorce?
No. Messages are content, and the Stored Communications Act bars disclosure to civil litigants. You would need the account holder to produce them — which you can compel from a party through ordinary discovery.
Can I recover deleted Facebook posts by subpoena?
No. Deleted content is content. Screenshot public posts before they disappear.
Can I unmask an anonymous Facebook account that is defaming my client?
Yes — that is the core civil use. Registration data and IP logs are what identify the person.
Do I caption it Facebook or Meta?
Meta Platforms, Inc. A subpoena to “Facebook, Inc.” names an entity that no longer exists.
Can I mail it to Menlo Park?
No. Meta will not respond to correspondence from non–law-enforcement sent to its corporate address. Serve the registered agent.
How long does it take?
Five business days standard, three on rush.