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Provisions for compelling the attendance of witnesses and production of documents before commissions to take evidence issued by courts in one part of the United Kingdom to be executed in another part.
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5. And whereas there are at present no means of compelling the attendance of persons to be examined under any commission for the examination of witnesses issued by the courts of law or equity in England or Ireland, or by the courts of law in Scotland, to be executed in a part of the realm subject to different laws from that in which such commissions are issued, and great inconvenience may arise by reason thereof: Be it therefore enacted, that if any person, after being served with a written notice to attend any commissioner or commissioners appointed to execute any such commission for the examination of witnesses as aforesaid, (such notice being signed by the commissioner or commissioners, and specifying the time and place of attendance,) shall refuse or fail to appear and be examined under such commission, such refusal or failure to appear shall be certified by such commissioner or commissioners, and it shall thereupon be competent, to or on behalf of any party suing out such commission, to apply to any of the superior courts of law in that part of the kingdom within which such commission is to be executed, or any one of the judges of such courts, for a rule or order to compel the person or persons so refusing or failing as aforesaid to appear before such commissioner or commissioners, and to be examined under such commission, and it shall be lawful for the court or judge to whom such application shall be made by rule or order to command the attendance and examination of any person to be named or the production of any writings or documents to be mentioned in such rule or order.
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Punishment of persons disobeying rule or order to appear or to produce writings or documents required.
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6. Upon the service of such rule or order upon the person named therein, if he or she shall not appear before such commissioner or commissioners as aforesaid for examination, or to produce the writings or documents mentioned in such rule or order, the disobedience to such rule or order shall, if the same shall happen in England or in Ireland, render the person disobeying subject and liable to such pains and penalties as he or she would be subject and liable to by reason of disobedience to a writ of subpoena in England or in Ireland, and if such disobedience shall happen in Scotland it shall be competent to the lord ordinary on the bills, upon an application made to him by or on behalf of any party suing out such commission, and upon proof of such disobedience made before him, to direct the issue of letters of second diligence, according to the forms of the law of Scotland, to be used against the person disobeying such rule or order.
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Payment of expences of witnesses, protection of privileged documents, &c.
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7. Provided always, that every person whose attendance shall be so required shall be entitled to the like conduct money and payment of expences and for loss of time as for and upon attendance at any trial in a court of law; and that no person shall be compelled to produce under such rule or order any writing or other document that he or she would not be compellable to produce at a trial, nor to attend on more than two consecutive days, to be named in such rule or order.
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