Every litigator has, undoubtedly, received requests or demands from occurrence witnesses — more colloquially referred to as fact witnesses, in order to distinguish them from expert witnesses — to be paid more than the $5 per day (plus mileage) authorized in Pennsylvania, pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. §5903, as "compensation to subpoenaed witnesses."
Pennsylvania Rule of Professional Conduct 3.4 provides that a lawyer shall not "pay, offer to pay, or acquiesce in the payment of compensation to a witness contingent upon the content of the witness' testimony or the outcome of the case; but a lawyer may pay, cause to be paid, guarantee or acquiesce in the payment of: (1) expenses reasonably incurred by a witness in attending or testifying, (2) reasonable compensation to a witness for the witness' loss of time in attending or testifying, and (3) a reasonable fee for the professional services of an expert witness."
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