You’ve probably been in a situation whereby someone or a group of people file a legal action against you. You got to know about this piece of information indirectly, your doorbell must have rang and on going to the door to check who it was, you saw an individual with a document for you.
A few days later, you do some research and find out that the guy who delivered those documents is a process server. Now you ask yourself the big question, what is process serving?
Process serving is the standard procedure by which a party to a lawsuit gives an appropriate notice of initial legal action to a second party in order to exercise jurisdiction over that person and to make the person respond to the legal proceeding.
A process server is simply an individual who delivers legal documents to let people know they’re involved in a court case. These documents can be divorce papers, custody documents, restraining orders and eviction notices.
An experienced independent process server will make sure your papers are delivered legally and before the deadline even in complicated scenarios. In this guide, to make it easy to find process serving companies in California, we have documented everything you need to know about process serving in California.
What Does a Process Server Do?
The purpose of process servers is for the easy delivery of legal documents. Thus, the question, “what is a process server allowed to do?” isn’t one with complicated answers. A process server is involved with a range of tasks such as filing court papers, serving legal documents to the recipient and document retrieval.
Their major duty is to deliver or serve legal documents to the defendant or the individual involved in a court case. The delivery of these documents is known as “service of process.” It’s a legal process that requires courts and tribunals to inform persons involved in a case in order for them to prepare their defense.
A common misconception is that a legal paper server is only involved with delivering divorce papers. Process servers use lots of technology and also offer tracing services which help locate people whose locations are unknown.
A process server may carry out their functions independently, for a private firm, a process serving company or a court. They do everything they can to ensure the documents get to the right person.
However, there are certain general rules that must be followed by individuals licensed to be process servers and they include:
- Displaying courtesy by being honest about who they are
- Avoid impersonating law enforcement officers or agents
Process Serving in California
California is a popular and well loved state for many reasons. However, there are also a few other negative factors attributed to and present in every state, a classic example is the divorce rate.
People always want to find process serving companies in California to file and serve their legal documents. This isn’t a surprise as the state of California has the largest court system in the country and serves about 40 million people in the country, as documented by the Judicial Branch of California Courts.
Before a person can carry out the duties of process servers in the state of California, they need to satisfy the requirements written in the Code of Civil Procedure.
However, there are a few regulations that guide process service in California. They include:
- The process server must not be below the age of 18
- The process server can never be a party to the case
Types of Process Service in California
There are various ways by which process service is carried out in the state of California.
- Personal Service
California law prohibits anyone serving more than 10 cases a year without registering as a professional process server. Improper service would definitely affect your case negatively, it’s recommended that you choose someone who is skilled at performing process service to carry out process serving for you.
Carrying out process service isn’t complicated and a good server will maintain a respectful distance from the person being served, verify the identity of the person being sued, inform the person that they’re being served and handover the documents to this person being served.
However, some litigants may be less friendly than others. Service is complete when the process server drops the documents in the presence of the litigant whether they accept it or not.
- Substituted Service
Sometimes it may be difficult to serve a party, most especially if they’ve been expecting the lawsuit. They might have plans to evade service by all means possible. The courts in California approve substituted service if personal service isn’t possible.
However there are certain guidelines that must be followed before going ahead, such as:
- The process server must have diligently tried to serve the documents personally 3 times
- The server must have tried to deliver the service at times when it’s expected for the recipient to be at home, work or the last known location of the litigant
- If the above processes have been fulfilled and yet the person refuses to be present to collect the documents, then they should be given to any competent individual above 18 years of age in their home
- If it’s in the workplace, then the documents should be given to anyone in charge
- Copies of the documents should be mailed to the person being served
- After serving a document, the individual performing the service has to complete and sign a proof of service form. This form allows the court to know when the documents have been served
- A few documents such as subpoenas, restraining orders and summons all have their specific proof of service forms
Conclusion
It isn’t difficult to find process serving companies in California. However, it’s important you follow this guide we’ve given you to find the best and most reliable service available.
If you’re reading this and you’re one of those people who try to evade service, then you might be surprised when you see what happens if a process server can’t find you.
It’d be best to quit trying to evade service. Get your notice and prepare for your defense in the court of law by hiring the best experienced lawyer near you.
