From adhering to federal and state laws surrounding the delivery of legal documents to implementing meticulous service records, these are some of the ways licensed process servers can help you achieve legal compliance if you're filing a lawsuit. Their services can also assist in ensuring the party you're suing gets served promptly.
All those benefits are integral to your case, as serving someone with legal documents is one of the critical first steps to any lawsuit. A case usually won't progress until the party getting served (also called the "defendant") receives the legal documents notifying them about the suit.
What Does a Licensed Process Server Do?
According to the Pew Charitable Trusts, state courts handle around 66 million legal cases each year. Such matters involve various aspects of the law, from traffic-related incidents to family affairs and civil cases.
If you become embroiled in such legal matters and are pursuing someone who has, for instance, done you wrong, you'd likely need to "serve" them with legal documents to initiate your lawsuit. It's during these instances that you'd have to work with a licensed process server as part of court compliance procedures.
When you hire licensed process servers, their primary role will be to provide you with legal compliance services related to legal document handling and delivery. They'll deliver legal documents to people or parties you're filing a claim or lawsuit against.
Licensed and certified process servers ensure people involved in a legal case (e.g., "defendants" or those accused of doing something illegal) receive proper legal notice. Providing such notice is a requirement of due process, and enlisting the services of process servers helps satisfy this right.
Can Anyone Be a Process Server?
No. Before people can become process servers, they must first meet specific eligibility criteria.
In most states, process servers must be at least 18 years old and a legal resident of the state they want to serve. They must also be a "disinterested" party, meaning they don't have any personal claim or financial stake in the case they're handling.
Many states and municipalities also require process servers to obtain certification, licensure, or registration.
New York is one of these, and in NYC, anyone who serves five or more processes in any year must have a Process Server Individual License, per NYC.gov. People interested in becoming a licensed process server in NYC must obtain their license from the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP).
How Do Licensed Process Servers Ensure Legal Compliance?
Licensed process servers help ensure legal compliance of not just you, the plaintiff (the term that refers to a person bringing a legal case against another), but also the person you're pursuing in court.
You, as someone with a personal or financial stake in the case, cannot be the one who serves the defendant legal documents related to the case. As mentioned above, it has to be a disinterested party. Failure to adhere to this rule can result in your case's dismissal or the nullification of the court judgments.
Legal and professional process serving benefits the other party, too, as it ensures that they receive the legal documents related to the case promptly. Timely receipt helps uphold their right to due process and gives them adequate time to respond to the case. It protects them from automatically "losing" due to a default judgment.
Licensed process servers also help ensure legal compliance through their meticulous recordkeeping. They keep detailed records of every process they serve, including:
- The name of the person they've served
- When they served the person
- Where they served the documents
Such records are crucial to any legal case, as courts use them as evidence to prove the correct and timely delivery of legal documents.
How Long Does It Take Licensed Process Servers to Serve Legal Documents?
It varies from one process server to another; it can be anywhere from 24 hours to five days. Depending on your needs, you can have the papers served the same day, within 24 to 48 hours, or within three to five days, according to this reliable process service agency in Brooklyn.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Process Servers Allowed to Find Evasive Defendants?
Yes. In most cases, the law requires them to conduct a diligent search and inquiry, meaning they must make genuine efforts to locate the person they need to serve papers to.
Reliable process servers can locate evasive defendants by using advanced technology while still adhering to federal, state, and local rules and regulations. From GPS tracking to skip tracing, mobile apps, and online and social media research, process servers use these tools to find people trying to evade them.
What Types of Documents Can Process Servers Serve?
Process servers can deliver and serve many types of legal documents, with the most common being summons and complaints. Summons and complaints are official documents stating that the addressee is a named defendant to a lawsuit (i.e., someone is suing them).
You can also hire a process server to serve family law documents, like custody orders or divorce papers. Likewise, you can work with these professionals to serve subpoenas. Subpoenas are legal documents compelling a party to testify as a witness or produce evidence for a court proceeding.
How Do Plaintiffs Know That the Process Server Has Completed the Service?
A reputable process server always provides dated and notarized affidavits of all attempts they took to serve the documents to the addressee.
The affidavits certify whether they were able to serve the recipient. If not, rest assured that reliable service providers will continue attempts at service until they achieve success or if you tell them to stop.
You can choose to have these notarized affidavits mailed to you, which you can then use as tangible proof and to maintain meticulous personal records.
Ensure Legal Compliance With the Help of a Licensed Process Server
The services of licensed process servers are integral to your case, as they can help ensure you comply with all laws regarding legal document delivery. You can also rest assured that the person you're pursuing in court gets served on time while maintaining their right to due process.
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This article was prepared by an independent contributor and helps us continue to deliver quality news and information.
