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Post by watchdog on Jan 8, 2008 5:45:27 GMT -5
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Post by watchdog on Jan 8, 2008 5:48:29 GMT -5
Posted by Gammy on CCW
Serving Documents You cannot use regular mail or fax your Application to the other party. "Serving" documents means providing copies of documents to the other party in a court case. Documents must be served on the other party at each step in the court process. By serving the other party, you are notifying him or her of the step you are taking and of the information you will be presenting to the court. Personal Safety: If you fear for your safety in serving court documents personally on the respondent, talk to the court staff and they will arrange to serve the respondent for you. You can also ask a friend or family member to assist you or you can hire a lawyer or process server to serve the documents. How can documents be served? There are two types of service: The names of process servers can be found in the Yellow Pages under “Process Server.” • Special Service • Regular Service Special Service Regular Service Applications must be provided to the other party by “special service.” Most other court documents can be provided by regular service. Any of the following methods can be used to serve documents requiring special service: Once the Application has been served, most other documents can be served by “regular service.” Regular service includes special service plus: • Handing a copy of the documents to the respondent, or the respondent’s lawyer. • Mailing or couriering the documents to the other party or to his or her lawyer. • Handing a copy of the documents to any person at the respondent’s home who appears to be an adult person living at that address and within one day, mailing a copy to the respondent at that address. • Faxing the documents to the other party or his or her lawyer, as long as the total number of pages is no more than 16, including any cover page or back sheet. • Mailing a copy of the documents to the respondent’s home address together with an acknowledgement of service in the form of a prepaid return postcard – Form 6. Service will only be valid when the respondent returns the signed postcard to the applicant. When a document is served by fax, a cover page should indicate: • The sender's name • Address • Telephone number • Fax number ………………………. 1 • Name of the person being served • The date and time of the fax • The total number of pages • The name and phone number of the person to contact in case of transmission problems Answers Answers are usually served on the applicant by regular service. The only exception is if the respondent is making a claim against a third party in his or her Answer. The Answer must be served on the third party by special service. Problems Serving Documents On rare occasions, you may be unable to serve the other party using the methods included under regular or special service. For example, you may be unable to locate the other party, or he or she may be evading service. You can bring a motion without notice asking the court for permission to notify the other party in some other way (such as service by advertisement) or for an order that service is not required. Refer to the Motions Guide for more information. When is service effective? It is important to know when service is effective because that is when the clock starts ticking for the other party to respond by serving his or her documents. For example, a respondent who lives in Canada has 30 days after he or she is served with an Application to respond by serving an Answer. • If a copy of the documents are handed personally to the respondent or the respondent’s lawyer, or to a person living at the respondent’s home, service will be effective on the day the documents were served, as long as this was done before 4:00 pm on a day when the court is open. Otherwise, service will be effective on the next day the court is open. • If the documents were served by fax, service will be effective on the day the documents were faxed if this was done before 4:00 pm on a day when the court is open. Otherwise, service will be effective on the next day the court is open. • If the documents were served by regular mail, service will be effective on the 5th day after the document(s) were mailed. • If the documents were served by courier, service will be effective the day after the document(s) were picked up. • Documents cannot be served on Sunday, except with the court’s permission. Proof that the Documents Were Served Affidavit of Service – Form 6B Once a document is served on the other party, the person who served the documents must complete an Affidavit of Service – Form 6B describing how he or she served the documents on the other party.
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