If you've ever been served process, you know it can be a somewhat upsetting and intimidating experience. A stranger shows up at your house, job, or even the gym parking lot to hand you court filings. These court filings can be for both criminal and civil matters. They can come as a surprise, can be about something you have ignored like a debt, or can be something you're waiting for, as in some cases of divorce and other litigation.
We are interested in explaining some of the types of court filings you can be process served broadly in our hopes of easing your anxieties.
States have different rules for who can serve process, but it's best if the opposing party has hired a professional like those at business law salem ut 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.
Here are the some of the types of court filings you could get from a process server:
Summons: Whether whether it's a felony, misdemeanor, tort or otherwise, a summons is an order for you to appear in court before a judge or jury. These should always 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.
Citation: These specific summons are handed out, generally, by police officers, so aren't technically known as process serving. The most common citations, including those for traffic violations, often require that you go before a judge by a future date. Accepting one of these is not any further responsibility or admission but, rather, a pledge that you will show up. If you don't keep your word, it can mean immediate findings of guilt and escalating fines.
Civil Summons: This legal call to court includes a specific time and date when you should go to court. It is different from a simple complaint informing you of the legal proceedings.
Administrative Summons: These come from the IRS and are for the purpose of ensuring that everyone follows the tax laws. These administrative orders require the person being served make an appearance before a federal tax examiner and offer documentation. This is set aside as the ultimate step in an IRS investigation after agents have attempted the past-due tax bill in other ways.
Small Claims Summons: Cases with just a little money involved often come from small claims court as the first notice of the lawsuit. These often force you to make the debt right or go see a judge. If you don't, you will likely have a judgment entered against you on your credit report.
Complaints: A complaint is a kind of court filing, usually civil, and is generally the first kind of legal document filed in a lawsuit. If you are given one of these, it means you have been sued and have become a defendant in a lawsuit. There can also be criminal complaints, which are more serious than tickets or citations but often less serious than indictments.
Indictments: These criminal filings are served after a grand jury, led by a prosecutor, gathers to weigh evidence in a felony case against you. A grand jury, like a regular jury, is made up of fellow citizens but the proceedings are kept confidential, even from the defendant. This special jury decides whether the prosecutor has enough evidence to charge you with a major. Without an indictment, the most serious cannot be prosecuted. Indictments will be served to you or your attorney.
Petitions: This kind legal pleading starts a lawsuit, but asks for something other than money These can also be served in court cases such as those regarding child custody and probate.
Subpoenas: These fall under different rules from complaints 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 documents or require you to attend a deposition. These are often sent between lawyers rather than to you personally, but not responding can mean contempt charges or a loss of your case.
The Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, like the constitutional documents of many other governments around the world, protect people by ensuring due process in legal matters. Everyone is entitled to a chance to make their case. Professional process service is a very important part of this civil guarantee and, when completed the right way, can make the lawsuit easier for everyone.