After writing our last blog article about how shows such as All Worked Up portray process servers in a way that isn’t true, I started thinking about all the ways in which process servers have seemed to take on an unfavorable impression in the eyes of the public over the years. Combined with the nice note John Perez (attorney and owner of NJ Legal Process Service) sent out a couple days ago in regard to Independence Day, the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments and the process servers role in due process it seems that many simply don’t understand the role of a process server.
When people think of process servers, they think of someone coming to the door with a pizza box to deliver bad news. While this is all true and there are sometimes disguises involved and the news is generally not the greatest, it’s not as though delivering this news is a joyful task. Process servers are the messengers, ensuring that individuals are aware of any legal actions that they are a part of.
Who wants to come home one day to a lock on their house with an eviction notice, simply because they weren’t notified of the foreclosure proceedings against them? Who wants to find out their wage has been garnished because of an outstanding debt they were unaware of? Not one person would want to go through this. And that’s where we come in, making sure that the person is involved, able to speak up and take actions through the necessary avenues.
Once you explain this to a person, their view seems to change (as it should!). We might have to deliver some bad news, but we’re not the bad guys. We’re here to help honor an individual’s right to due process.
