Legal Question in Family Law in California

He should contact the subpoenaing attorney and find out what they need. If they only need the records, then staff would be a better witness to authenticate the documents than the doctor anyway. However, if it was addressed to the doctor personally, they are probably expecting to ask him questions too, either about the documents or about the children and the documents.

It is customary for doctors testifying in their professional capacity, even if not as a designated expert, to be compensated for their time. It is not, however, required that he be paid any more than any other witness (which is a statutory amount that is basically pocket change). On the other hand, most attorneys know that a disgruntled MD will usually do more harm to their case than good, or will at least be VERY forgetful, and so make arrangements for payment.