Service of Process: Important Things You Should Know

You’ve filed your civil complaint in Volusia County and received the initial case summons from the Clerk of Court…now what? The next step in your legal journey is to serve the summons and complaint to every defendant named in your suit. Additionally, if you intend to call any witnesses during the case, you’ll need to serve them with subpoenas requesting their appearance. So is it time to make some copies and start knocking on doors? NO! Serving process is an essential part of the legal system with specific rules that must be followed.

Service of Process is Required

If you’re thinking about skipping serving the process in your civil case and just showing up on the scheduled court date, think again. Service of process is absolutely required before any court case can proceed in Florida. The Clerk of Court where the case was filed will keep an eye out for confirmation that all defendants have been properly served within the required timeframe, as proof of said service must be documented and should be filed with the court upon completion. If the clerk cannot verify that everyone was served, the case will be delayed (or worse) until everyone is properly notified.

Not Just Anyone Can Serve Process in Florida

Many states have a very lazze faire approach to who can and cannot be a process server there, but not Florida. Florida has one of the country’s strictest set of laws for private process servers. These laws require that anyone who intends to serve process in Florida be certified/approved/appointed by the court or sheriff’s office in their local area. This process requires several steps, including training and examination, background checks, surety bonds, and more. So getting your cousin Bob to serve the process for your civil case just isn’t going to cut it.

Improper Service of Process Can Derail Your Entire Case

Let’s say you do try to save some cash and ask a friend to serve your case’s process instead of hiring a certified process server. Don’t be surprised if the judge throws out your entire case due to improper service, requiring you to refile everything and pay all applicable fees again. This could cost you hundreds of dollars extra and delay your case’s settlement for months or even years. Don’t take the risk…just hire the professional, certified process server from the beginning, and you won’t have to worry about improper service of process derailing your entire case.

Daytona Beach’s Premier Process Service Agency

For the best process servers in Volusia and surrounding counties, trust the team at Accurate Serve of Daytona. We handle cases in Daytona Beach, Titusville, Palm Coast, and beyond with high-quality, timely service of process that covers all your bases. Give us a call at (386) 569-8475 or send us a work request online to get started today.