All things change, and that includes the process service industry. While the basic premise of process service is consistent – to protect due process rights – and the legal industry as a whole is slow to shift, there have been some pretty significant changes to the industry recently. While process service continues to evolve, the need for personal service and to adhere to service rules will always remain the same.

That said, here are some of the changes we’ve seen lately. 

Substitute service options

Personal process service has been the “gold standard“ a process service for decades, if not centuries. Personal process service provides the highest level of assurance that an individual’s right to due process is being honored. It requires thoroughness, diligence, and professional commitment to see the job done right and make sure the individual is made aware of the legal actions they’re involved in. 

However, personal service is also difficult. People move more frequently these days without updating their address in motor vehicle or other systems. While we always aim for personal service, there are times when substitute service needs to be requested. 

And in this age of life lived online, the options for how service can be delivered are expanding. Enter: process service via email and social media.

To be fair, process service via social media and email are not common. To have this done, the judge must grant special dispensation for the documents to be served via an alternate method. However these requests have been made successfully multiple times in numerous jurisdictions. Authenticating these accounts and their frequency of use can be a challenge, but it does provide a higher likelihood of being seen in comparison to alternate service via newspaper publication. 

E-filing

Once upon a time, all legal activity had to take place in a courthouse or courtroom. No longer. Today – even before the COVID-19 pandemic – e-filing has become a commonplace activity for contemporary courtrooms. 

E-filing has huge benefits for everyone involved. It streamlines the legal process, makes documents more acceptable to everybody, reduces costs, and is generally much faster than hand-delivering documents. When it comes to filing affidavits, it also allows for expedited delivery of especially important services. For example, a server in the field can scan in their completed affidavit, send it directly to the attorney (if the state does not allow process servers access to the e-filing portal) and have it e-filed within minutes of the service being completed.

Remote notaries

Remote notaries are having a moment. With the restrictions placed on court activity because of COVID-19, situations in which remote notarization is allowed has expanded. At least 24 states have enacted laws to allow for remote notaries. 

How does remote notarization affect service of process? Many states require that affidavits of service are notarized by a notary public. 

Having expanded capabilities for getting documents notarized would expedite the process for all involved, as process servers would not have to rely on the availability of an in-person notary.

Many of the changes that have occurred in the process serving industry are due to advances in technology. Alternate service via social media, remote notary publics, and e-filing, are all big developments that impact numerous industries. However change is also driven by client expectations. The increase in efficiency and higher degree of assurance that technology brings is an asset to all involved, clients and process servers alike.