Many people believe that by not answering the door for a process server, they can avoid being sued or having to go to court. After all, the lawsuit cannot begin until papers are served, right? Not necessarily. Florida courts have many provisions in place to ensure a legal process can take place as timely as possible, even if the person being served manages to dodge the process server several times in a row.
If a process server cannot make contact with the defendant directly, Plan B allows the papers to be mailed to the person’s home or business address via Certified Mail. The delivery receipt is all that is needed to constitute “being served.” The papers can also be hand-delivered to a competent adult at the defendant’s home or place of employment and the lawsuit will proceed. If either of these options fail, the court reserves the right to resort to Plan C, which is something no one wants to have to deal with.
Plan C, The Last Resort
Let’s say a person has been slippery enough to avoid answering the door (or being home) when the process server comes, and they have not been at work. Further, maybe the person no longer works and they have abandoned their residence. Certified Mail has been returned with no forwarding address. If the process server is still unable to locate and serve the defendant after several tries through Plan A and Plan B, the court may grant permission to the Prosecution to resort to Plan C.
This involves the Prosecution taking an ad out in local media (newspapers) and publicly serving the defendant. This is embarrassing to the defendant and does not even have to be read or seen by the defendant. Public notice is all that is required to allow the lawsuit to proceed.
Essentially, while process servers may be avoided repeatedly, there is always a way to serve a person. While the case may be delayed for up to a few months while service is attempted, eventually the lawsuit will commence with or without the defendant present. The best thing a person being served can do is accept the paperwork without issue and get it over with.
