General Information
The law usually requires that notice be provided to persons potentially affected by a lawsuit, so they have the option to appear in front of the court before a final decision is made about the issue. The specific notice requirements may vary, depending on the type of action that is being filed. In most cases, the law requires the person filing an action with the court to cause notice of that action to be “personally served”on the other party. Usually this means making a “true copy” (exact and complete copy) of the claim, complaint, motion or petition filed in court, and having it delivered directly to the other party, along with a summons, setting forth the deadline for a response, and the consequences of failure to respond. If personal service is not possible, substitute service, office service and service by mail may also be sufficient. These options are spelled out in more detail along with the general rules for service of summons in the Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 7.
There are also circumstances in which the law requires “public notice” be given, through posting or publishing in a local newspaper. This usually happens when there is not a specific person impacted by the court’s action, such as a person requesting a name change.
After the other party responds to a complaint or a petition, the law generally requires both parties to provide copies of correspondence or pleadings they file with the court to the other party, and to file proof that proper notice was given, with the court. This gives each party a chance to provide input to the judge before any decision is made. The general rules for this requirement can be found in the Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 9.
The most common way of serving another party is to pay a private process server or local sheriff’s office to serve the papers for you. The cost is around $30, but may vary according to the location of the other party. It is your responsibility to make sure a proof of service, a form documenting how service was actually made on the other party, is filed with the court. If you hire someone to complete service, they usually file this document for you. The court will not grant relief in your case until the other party has been legally served.
Serving the papers yourself is not usually allowed by law, and may not always be safe. If you choose not to hire a process server or the sheriff’s office, the general rule is that any competent person 18 years of age or older who is a resident of the state where service is made or of Oregon, and is not a party to the case, nor an officer, director, or employee of, nor attorney for any party, may complete service. Caution should be used before asking a friend or relative to serve the papers if the other party might react angrily or violently.
If the other party can not be located, you may file a written request with the court to allow another method of service, such as publishing of summons, posting at specified locations, or mailing to a post office box. The court will decide if all avenues to locate the other party have been exhausted before granting an order to allow another method of service.
If the law requires or allows notice to be published in a newspaper, the court may direct notice be published in a particular one, or may just require it be published in a newspaper of general circulation. Please Click here to return to the Small Claims assistance page |
