Imagine a stranger rushing up to ring your doorbell or coming knocking at your office with a lawsuit or order for your arrest that he or she must hand to you personally. When this occurs, you are being served legal process. You will probably be a little upset and as if you're being hunted, but it's important to remember that you have a legal right to these documents as part of the due process guarantee. Whether these documents are about civil or criminal matters or issues large or small, you should not dismiss them.
The legal documents can be written in "legalese. They aren't designed to be easy for the layperson to read, but should be in simple enough language for you to understand at some level. We would like to talk about the different kinds of legal documents you could receive, but we always recommend consulting with an attorney for any civil or criminal issue.
States have different rules for who can serve process, but it's best if the opposing party has hired a professional like those at divorce lawyers near me to do the job. These people will understand all the legal rules and ramifications, particularly about things like stalking and trespassing, so they can ensure that both the rights of the recipient and the responsibilities of the plaintiff or prosecutor are attended to.
Let's go over the major kinds of legal documents you could get from a process server:
Administrative Summons: These come from the Internal Revenue Service and help ensure that everyone gives their fair share according to the tax laws. These summons require the receiving party to appear before a federal tax examiner and produce information. This is usually the final step in an IRS investigation.
Citation: These specific summons are handed out, usually, by police officers, so aren't technically in the category of process serving. The most common citations, including traffic tickets, often require that you show up in court or pay fines by a future date. Accepting one of these is not saying you're guilty but, instead, a promise to appear. If you don't keep your word, it can mean immediate findings of fault and exponential fines and court fees.
Civil Summons: This legal call to court includes a specific time when you should go to court. It is separate from a simple complaint informing you of the lawsuit. These can be process served in many kinds of civil cases, including divorce and child custody matters.
Complaints: A complaint is a kind of legal document, usually civil, and is the first filed in a case. If you are served with a complaint, it means you are being sued. Criminal complaints are more serious than tickets or citations but often less sever than indictments.
Indictments: These criminal filings are handed down after a grand jury, led by a prosecutor, gathers to weigh evidence in a felony case. A grand jury, like a regular jury, is made up of fellow citizens but the proceedings aresecret. This special jury decides whether the prosecutor has enough evidence to charge you with a major. Without one of these decisions, the most serious crimes cannot be prosecuted. Indictments will be handed to you or your legal representative.
Petitions: This kind legal filing begins a case, but asks for non-monetary or equitable relief These can also be handed out in cases such as those in family law.
Small Claims Summons: Process serving documents related to small personal disputes often come from small claims courtas the first notice of the lawsuit. These often force you to start working with the creditor right away or to meet your opponent in court. If you don't, you will likely have a judgment entered against you on your credit report.
Subpoenas: These aren't complaints or pleadings, like other process serving documents, and usually have to be signed off on by a court clerk. They are a type of summons, but they force you to appear as a witness to give testimony, require you to present documentary evidence or tell you to attend a deposition with an lawyer. These are often served between attorneys rather than to you in person, but not responding can mean contempt charges or a loss of your case.
Summons: Whether civil or criminal, a summons is an order for you to appear before a judge or administrative court. These usually give a date and time on which to appear. If you don't , you can either be deemed "non-responsive" and lose the case or can be charged criminally.
At least two U.S. Constitutional Amendments guarantee the right to due process. Many other countries also grant the right of due process and have process serving requirements. If you are suing, it's vital to your case to get process documents served properly to the defendant. If you are on the other side, it's just as paramount to read the complaint, summons or subpoena or you could face even more serious legal trouble. Process serving may be an unwelcome event, but it's very important under our system of law.