If you’re looking for a way to make your upcoming criminal or civil case more complicated, just avoid the process server. When process servers cannot locate potential defendants or witnesses to serve summons and subpoenas, the entire case comes to a complete halt until either process is served or a judge approves alternative means. Not to mention there are big financial and legal risks that come along with delaying service of process, such as:
- Increasing the length and cost of the trial
- Accumulating multiple process service fees
- A judge ruling in the opposing party’s favor without you even being present
- Being fined or sentenced to jail time
- Tarnishing your work and personal reputation
- Possibly announcing the situation to the public
Avoiding the process server will obviously extend the length of the case as multiple attempts must be made to locate you prior to a judge approving alternative means of service, such as mail or service by publication. These multiple attempts may span several days or even weeks and require the process server to visit various locations. Further complicating things, the locations may be quite a distance from each other, especially if service attempts are required outside of Florida’s 13th judicial circuit which only covers Hillsborough county, including Tampa. Serving processes in other Florida counties require the process server to be certified in those counties by the sheriff or a chief judge of that county’s judicial circuit. Since most process servers in Florida are not certified to cover very large distances, time must be spent locating a different process server in that area to locate the person to be served. Everyone knows time equals money, and all these time delays are undoubtedly going to shoot the overall cost of the related case through the roof.
Guess who might be on the hook for paying all those extra costs, especially the multiple process server fees? In Florida, the person evading service of process can be ordered to pay all the extra costs incurred from having to hunt them down.
Avoiding the service of process will not ultimately stop the trial from moving forward, and it almost guarantees that the outcome will not be in your favor. All states have laws in place to govern what happens when service of process cannot occur. While dodging the process server will temporarily pause the case proceedings; it will continue at some point with or without the party to be served. If you are being summoned as a defendant, the judge will likely rule in the plaintiff’s favor and will award them what they have requested, which could be significant assets. If you are being subpoenaed as a witness and refuse to receive service, the judge can still order you to appear at the trial. If you don’t show up, the judge can then hold you in contempt of court, which could carry a fine and even jail time.
Constantly looking over your shoulder to avoid a process server is no way to live, and there’s no doubt your family, friends, and co-workers will start to notice your strange behavior. Even if they’re not sure what’s going on at first, they’ll wonder no more when a judge allows you to be served by publication and an announcement is posted in the local newspaper. Involvement in any type of legal matter can affect how your employer views your credibility and have long-term impacts on your career. It can also cause people in your personal life to find you less trustworthy.
Many risks go along with avoiding service of process, no matter what your reason. If you have a legitimate reason to resist complying with a summons or subpoena, there are procedures in place for you to air those complaints. Avoiding service will end up costing you more time and money, and the damage to your reputation could last for years to come.
