“There are key things you can do to ensure
you timely receive the records you need.”
can (and should) be addressed before the
subpoena is issued. This phone call can
also be helpful when a short response
time is unavoidable.
Plan your timeline. When calculating
the date by which you want the records,
remember the required notice. Try to
allow a minimum of three weeks so that
the school has at least two weeks for the
required notice period after it has been
served with the subpoena. Also, check
the school’s website for its academic
and employee holiday calendars, as
many institutions have extended periods
of closure and plan the response date
accordingly. Faculty typically follow
the students’ schedules and may not
be available to provide records to the
office preparing the response, if certain
records, such as class attendance and
advising records, are needed and are
kept in the faculty member’s office.
State with specificity. Do not request
“any and all education records” or use
similar boilerplate language. Be specific
and request only those records needed
and only for the time period needed. If
you only need to confirm that a student
attended that institution, the dates of
attendance, and whether a degree was
awarded, an official transcript may
suffice and can be provided quickly
with minimal effort on the part of the
institution. A transcript will indicate
whether a student withdrew from the
school and the date of withdrawal. If
you need an official transcript, student
accounting records, student health
center records, and records relating to a
student’s withdrawal, then ask for only
those records.
Check the Records Retention
Policy. Most institutions are required
to maintain the majority of student
records for only a certain period of
time. This is generally based upon
the student’s last date of enrollment.
For public institutions, this is usually
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controlled by that state’s official records
retention schedule. For a student
who has not attended in over five
years, the only records available may
be the official transcript and records
relating to suspension or expulsion, as
the education records deemed to be
permanent records are limited.
Obtain opposing counsel’s
cooperation. An institution will
occasionally produce the records during
the notice period (after giving notice to
the student or his attorney) if the school
is provided written notification by the
student or his attorney that the student
does not plan to object to the disclosure
of his records. You might consider
asking opposing counsel to send such
a letter to the school to expedite
production of the records.
Be patient and courteous. University
legal offices and registrar offices are
generally understaffed and overworked.
A friendly, courteous, and professional
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