Berkeley is a Northern California city on the San Francisco Bay’s east side. It’s the home of the University of California, Berkeley, which was the genesis of the Free Speech Movement in the 1960s.
If you’re living in Berkeley and want to serve a court paper to someone, this article is for you. Here we’ll define what a process server is, their functions, and how they perform their obligations.
So, if you’re looking to hire a process server in Berkeley, CA, here’s everything you need to know. But first, who is a process server?
Who Is a Process Server?
A process server is a person whose responsibility is to deliver court documents and notices to an individual or their lawyer during legal action.
Berkeley, CA process servers play a crucial role in numerous legal procedures. These individuals are responsible for filing court papers, serving and delivering legal documents, and retrieving other court documentation and goods.
Serving someone legally means delivering court paperwork that binds them to debt, crime, or litigation. To avoid detection, individuals often try to disguise their locations or move in advance of being served.
So, a process server in Berkeley, CA employ private and public records, and other investigative techniques to find the people they serve in these situations.
Who Can Serve a Process in Berkeley, California?
Before a person or corporation may be served with court documents, it’s crucial to know who is authorized to deliver legal papers under the California Code of Civil Procedure.
According to the Judicial Branch of California, you can find a process server in Berkeley (CA) among diverse groups of people, including:
- Kinsmen and friends
- Fellow employees
- Your county sheriff
- Professional process servers
However, several conditions come with the serving procedure. A process server in Berkeley, CA must be at least 18 years old in all circumstances. Furthermore, a process server isn’t permitted to be involved in the litigation. This constraint implies that if you are the plaintiff, you’ll be unable to serve the defendant.
Why Seek a Process Server?
Although serving some documents by yourself is possible, it’s advisable to engage a professional process server rather than a friend, kinsman, or other non-professionals, since a professional will ensure that the documents are correctly served and the service is acknowledged by the courts. A process server can complete and file the affidavit on your behalf.
Provincial laws govern rules and regulations such as acceptable means of service and the appropriate sequence in which papers must be served if numerous parties are involved. If you hire a process server, the judge will be confident that the papers were delivered following the law.
Can You Refuse a Service of Process?
It’s up to you whether or not to accept the documents a process server is delivering. However, it’s legally acceptable for the server to leave the documents beside you or at your feet.
Furthermore, refusing service won’t stop the proceeding lawsuit against you.
How Do Process Servers Find People?
This part is the most strenuous because it’s possible individuals are purposely avoiding service, or they’re unreachable at that moment. Here’s how a typical process server finds people:
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Skip Tracing
Skip tracing is commonly used for locating someone whose whereabouts are unknown. This method can be used to track down a person’s location for various reasons. By skip tracing, a process server will attempt to locate the individual by gathering information like:
- The individual’s names (first name and last name)
- The last known address (residence or business)
- Specific information on spouses, parents, other kinsmen, acquaintances, and business associates
- Contact details (phone number, email address, etcetera)
- The person’s age or date of birth
- Social Insurance Number (SIN)
- Last known job
- Criminal records (if any)
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Hiring a Private Investigator
A process server can hire a private investigator to help find the individual due for service. Private investigators (PIs) employ numerous techniques to find missing persons for whatever reasons. It’s crucial to know that it’s prohibited to sell or perform PI services without an agency license. So, process servers are cautious about who they hire for private investigation.
Types of Service in California
Before you hire a local process server in Berkeley, CA, it’s crucial that you understand the various ways the individual can service you.
Here are the common methods:
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Personal Service
When people hear “process service,” they envision the server personally delivering the document themselves. This activity can occur in a person’s home, workplace, or public area. The process server must notify the individual being served that they have court papers to receive.
It doesn’t matter whether the party being served accepts the documents or rejects them. The service remains valid, and the process server must fill out a proof of service form that details the manner and time the court documents were delivered.
Personal service is the most effective process service technique because the respondent is undoubtedly aware of the papers, and the server can attest to their physical service.
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Substituted Service
After numerous attempts to serve the individual have failed, substituted service comes to play. In substituted service, court papers are given to someone other than the former party.
This option is available only after a process server has attempted to service the respondent at least thrice.
However, there are conditions attached to this method:
- The documents must not be left with a minor (less than 18 years old), and they must be part of the defendant’s household or workplace (if service was attempted at the individual’s employment place)
- The process server is required to mail copies of the papers to the address where he completed the substituted service
- The process server must also sign and submit a due diligence declaration under penalty of perjury
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Service by Mail
It’s not always possible to deliver the papers to the party by hand or find a substitute. In these cases, the next step is to see if service by mail is permissible under local legislation.
Five days after mailing the documents, service by mail is deemed complete. However, like with substituted service, determining if the respondent received the court papers is a problem.
Depending on the nature of the litigation, various alternative ways of service may be sufficient, like publishing and posting in the courtroom. Always double-check that any form of service other than personal service is permitted in your situation.
Conclusion
When you hire someone to serve you papers, it’s crucial to make yourself available for personal service first, as this is the most effective method.
However, if you’re unavailable, then ensure there’s a legally acceptable member of your household that can receive these court papers on your behalf.
Although delivery by mail is acceptable during the service of process in California, don’t rely on it since other methods are more dependable.
