Service of process is a vital legal procedure that ensures parties involved in a lawsuit are officially notified of the legal actions against them. However, individuals may be tempted to evade or avoid service of process in certain circumstances. This article delves into the motivations behind such actions, examines the potential consequences, and explores the ethical implications associated with avoiding service of process.
Insufficient Awareness and Understanding
A lack of awareness regarding the legal implications of service of process often leads individuals to consider evading it. Understanding the significance of being served with legal documents and the potential consequences of avoiding the process is essential. Educating oneself about the legal system and the importance of due process is crucial before making any decisions in this regard.
Fear and Denial
Facing legal action can be overwhelming, leading individuals to contemplate evading service of process out of fear, denial, or the hope that the issue will vanish. However, evading service can result in additional complications and more severe legal consequences.
Delaying Tactics
Some individuals may attempt to avoid service of process as a strategic maneuver to prolong legal proceedings. This tactic may provide extra time to gather evidence, seek legal advice, or inconvenience the opposing party. However, deliberately avoiding service can harm credibility and complicate the case further.
Consequences of Avoidance
Avoiding service of process carries significant consequences. Successful evasion can hinder the progress of the lawsuit, causing delays, wasting court resources, and increasing legal expenses for all parties involved. Courts may also impose sanctions, ranging from fines to more severe penalties, on those intentionally evading service.
Ethical Considerations
Deliberate avoidance of service raises ethical concerns, undermining the integrity of the legal system and obstructing justice. It is crucial to weigh the ethical implications and potential harm inflicted on the legal system and the opposing party before deciding to evade service of process.
Alternative Options
Instead of evading service of process, individuals should consider alternative approaches to address their concerns. Consulting an attorney to address any issues with the service, such as improper delivery or irregularities, can ensure the protection of one’s rights. Engaging in good faith, promptly responding to legal documents, and seeking legal advice are typically more advantageous in the long run.
Conclusion
While the temptation to avoid service of process may arise in certain situations, it is important to consider the potential consequences and ethical implications. Evading service can lead to delays, increased legal expenses, and more severe penalties. Seeking legal counsel to address concerns or issues with the service, rather than attempting to avoid it entirely, ensures a fair and just resolution to legal matters.
Video Transcript
What Is Service of Process?
Well, what is service of process? That is when you are getting sued. Somebody is trying to deliver legal documents to you, and usually, they need to at least attempt to deliver them to you in person. That means somebody needs to come up and hand them to you or put them on your doorstep.
Should You Try to Avoid It?
What does that look like? Well, you see somebody that you don’t know coming up the sidewalk. They ring the doorbell. You duck down below the couch. You wait to see what they are doing. Maybe you peek out the edge of the window. Maybe you have somebody else in your family peek out the edge of the window to see what they are doing. Maybe you have all the shades pulled, or maybe you are out of town, but your front doorbell camera picked up somebody doing something.
Whatever the circumstances, you are probably wondering, should you try to avoid service of process? What are the benefits of that? I recommend you don’t try to avoid it.
What Are the Benefits?
Here are the benefits. The benefit is once you are served a lawsuit, the clock starts ticking, and you have a certain number of days to respond to that lawsuit. So you might be able to get an additional seven days if you delay getting served the papers by one week. But what benefit is that really? I mean, an additional seven days, but how does it really matter? There is a downside, though.
First off, just practically, you are going to start feeling really paranoid anytime somebody you don’t recognize is driving near your house or walking near your house, or maybe somebody is coming up to your workplace; you start to drive and look around corners and peek around bushes; mild paranoia can set in. It is really stressful. So when my clients ask me about that, I say, “Look, let’s just accept service of process. I can even do it on your behalf. It is not worth the stress of this unknown lawsuit being served. Get it? We will figure out what it says, and we will deal with it. And besides, it is not like you can avoid it forever. You might be able to avoid it for a few days.”
There is another problem. If you try to avoid service of process, that is a violation of the law. And it is not going to look good in your lawsuit if you try to avoid getting sued for a while and you require the other side to spend a lot of time and money chasing you down.
Conclusion
So, generally speaking, I say just accept the lawsuit. Let’s figure it out what it is, and then we deal with it. Lawsuits can be dealt with, and you have plenty of time as long as you have an attorney in your corner who can walk you through that. So I do not recommend trying to avoid service of process.
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