Tips For Serving Somebody Legal Papers
When you need to give somebody a court summons, part of the process will be verifying that they have received notification of the summons. This can be the most challenging part, because there are requirements for verifying somebody has been identified and served papers successfully. Here are some tips that will help you do it.
Give a Complete Description of the Person
You'll want to give your lawyer a full description of what the person is like. This goes beyond their overall appearance with things like weight, height, and hair color. You'll want to give information about where they are employed, what days of the week they work, places they hang out, and any routines that can help a process server find them. If you know the kind of car they drive, that will help identify where they are at as well.
Try Calling Out Their Name
If you knock on someone's front door to serve them papers, you may not have any luck because you won't catch them off guard. They can decide to not answer the door, or just pretend that they're not the person that is being served papers. The papers can't be left with someone without verification, or else they won't be considered successfully delivered.
A good technique is to find a place where you would expect the person to be, like outside their home or where they work. Have the process server say their name to get their attention, having them verify who they are when caught off guard without much chance to think about it. This should be enough to legally server them legal papers.
Try A Social Situation
Sometimes a social situation is the best way to serve somebody legal papers. This is because social situations tend to be a place where people introduce themselves to each other, which is a way for somebody to properly identify themselves. For instance, if the person is at a bar, a process server can casually approach the person to introduce themselves so that the other person reciprocates.
Use A Neighbor
A neighbor might be best at telling you the habits of when somebody is home, which will help you catch them to serve them papers. Knowing times that they leave for work or come home could be your window of opportunity for getting the papers served.
For more tips on how to server somebody legal papers, work with your attorney. They have experience in this area, and know of all the best advice to get it done.