How Can I Find a Missing Person That Needs to Be Served?
You have an important document to serve. Maybe it’s divorce papers or an eviction notice. But the person you need to serve can’t be found. This is a common and frustrating occurrence, but with the help of an experienced process server, you can still serve papers and move on with your legal battle.
Provide Appropriate Service of Process
State laws vary throughout the country, but Florida remains consistent with all other states that cannot take legal action against somebody who has not properly been informed of the legal process. This formal notice is called service of process.
For example, in a divorce, the spouse who files for divorce needs to have divorce papers personally delivered to the other spouse with the help of a process server. Divorce papers consist of a summons and a complaint that give the receiving spouse a specific number of days to respond.
This service of process is a critical component of the integrity of the American legal system. Attempting- and proving that you attempted!- traditional service of process is the first step.
Different Methods of Service
When the traditional service of process fails, you need to exhaust the list of alternative methods of service. The legal system provides three other methods of service to meet the needs of all situations. It is critical to work with an experienced process server to ensure that all service requirements are met, regardless of the type of service used.
The first type of service of process is personal or “hand delivery” service, and it is the most common and effective form. During personal service, the process server goes to the recipient’s house, knocks on his or her door, and hands over the divorce papers. As long as the process server properly documents the events of the service, hand delivery is very difficult for angry recipients to challenge in court.
One alternative method is substituted service, which can include using registered mail, leaving the papers with another adult at the residence, and affixing papers to the entrance of the defendant’s home. When all else fails, publication of notice in a newspaper can be used to attempt to alert the defendant who was impossible to find and serve through other means.
For professional and reliable service of process for your own divorce, trust Accurate Serve Plantation with your papers. The accredited process servers at Accurate Serve have been meeting the needs of legal professionals and individuals since 2009.