The process of delivering the legal documents that are given to a person letting them know that they need to appear in court is referred to as service of process. There are a number of ways that someone can receive these documents, with one such option being substituted service.
The substituted service action is an instance when the professional process server serves you in an indirect manner. Typically this is when they give the legal documents to a family member or friend who is approved by the court, by publishing the process publicly, delivering it to your place of work or sending it through the regular mail.
The standards associated with substituted service are highlighted here.
Since this method of service is not as desirable as a direct service, there are a number of courts that will first require that the process server offer evidence in regard to the inability to reach the individual directly. Once this is established, the judge will determine that substituted service is required.
In most cases, if you are unable to be reached to receive these legal documents, the next option will be to hand them over to a person, who is approved by the court, where you live. The candidacy of the person will be determined at the discretion of the court; however, in most cases they must be an adult. This is a favored option due to the fact that the documents will be delivered to your residence and the person that receives them is bound by law to give them to you.
Process servers will attempt several times to serve the papers; however, once it is deemed impossible, then the substituted service will be utilized to ensure that the documents eventually get to the intended party.
