service of proceeding Flashcards
TIME LIMITS FOR SERVICE OFTHE CLAIM FORM
- Must Be Served Within Four Months
The rules state that a sealed claim form must be served on
the defendants within four months of the date of issue, that
is, before midnight on the calendar day four months after the date of issue. - Time Limit for Service Out of the jurisdiction
If serving a party outside the jurisdiction, service must take
place within six months of the date of issue.
service by court
The court will serve
unless the claimant specifcally asks them not to do so
Service by First Class Post
If the claimant asks the court to serve, the court will normally post the proceedings to the defendants by frst class post.
Documents Included for Service
When serving, the court will include the claim form and
**Particulars of Claim (if provided), attaching the medical report where appropriate and a schedule of past and future loss
and expense, notice of funding, and any certifcate of suit-
ability of a Litigation Friend, if requested to do so. The court will also serve on the defendant the response pack**—a form
the defendant is to send back to the court containing an
acknowledgement of service and an indication of whether
the defendant will defend or contest jurisdiction.
Solicitor Service
If the claimant asks the court to return the claim form to them for service, it becomes the responsibility of the claimant to
ensure that they serve the proceedings on time and that all
the relevant documents are included.
Other Methods of Service
Service does not have to be by post; a claimant may serve
the defendant by a variety of methods.
a.Service on Defendant’s Nominated Solicitors
b.Personal Service
c.‘Handed to the Individual Being Served’
d.Fax
e.Document Exchange (‘DX’)
f.Email
Service on Defendant’s Nominated Solicitors
f the defendant has nominated solicitors to accept service,
the proceedings usually must be served on the nominee un-
less, of course, a contract provides otherwise. However, if the defendant is a company, delivery or posting to the company’s registered ofce address will sufce.
Personal Service
If the defendant has not nominated solicitors, a claimant may serve the defendant personally:
*In the case of an individual, by leaving the proceedings
with the individual being served;
*In the case of a company, by leaving the proceedings
with a person holding a senior position within the com-
pany (for example, Chairman, Chief Executive Ofcer,
Managing Director, or company director); or
In the case of a partnership being sued in the firm name, by leaving it with a partner or, alternatively, a person who at the time of service has control or management of the partnership business at its principal place of business.
‘Handed to the Individual Being Served’
Personal service does require that the individual being
served take hold of the papers, although the courts have
held that if the recipient hands them back or simply throws
them on the ground, it is good service so long as the process server has explained the general nature of the documents.
Fax
Service by fax can take place if:
*A party or the party’s legal representative has** indicated in writing **that they are willing to accept service by fax;
*The party has given the fax number to which documents
should be transmitted (a fax number on the frm’s writing
paper would be considered express notice unless indi-
cated to the contrary); and
*The fax number is within the jurisdiction.
Document Exchange (‘DX’)
A claim form can be served by document exchange (‘DX’) if
the party’s address for service includes a DX, the DX number is on the party’s writing paper, and **there has been no explicit indication that service will not be accepted **by this method.
A claim may be served by email only if there is express
consent to such service and the party has given the email
address to which parties should transmit documents. An
email address on a frm’s paper is not sufcient to amount to express consent to service by email. Neither does the mere
fact that the parties have communicated via email constitute express consent for service by email.
WHEN IS CLAIM FORM DEEMED TO BE
SERVED?
the CPR includes an indisputable presumption that the claim form is deemed to be served, whatever the method of service,** on the second business day **after the step set out in the following table
has occurred. (The CPR defnes ‘business day’ as any day
except Saturday, Sunday, a bank holiday, Good Friday, or
Christmas Day.)
method
personal service
step required
Leaving the claim form with the individual/partner
Post or DX
Posting, leaving with the
relevant service provider
