Process Server Service

What is process serving and when is it used?

The main role of a process server is to deliver court orders and other legal documentation as part of legal proceedings, such as with matrimony, property, bankruptcy, and many forms of commercial disputes. Somebody bringing legal action against another party must inform them of the impending action. It is not sufficient to simply phone or email them, they must be served with physical papers and in a proper, verifiable manner.

The process of serving somebody with legal papers of this nature is not as straight forward as it may seem. Sometimes, legal documents can be simply posted, but most need to be delivered in person. The physical place documents need to be severed has to be ascertained and indeed is the whereabouts of the person to whom the documents are to be served upon. Often, the person in question may get a tip-off that they are to be served and will try to avoid this. In some cases stealth and persistence are needed by process servers to ensure a defendant is correctly severed as later in court they may have to prove this.

Serving papers to people who don’t want to receive them or who live in remote areas can be a considerable challenge and can be a task requiring the international experience of a Process Server agency like Blackhawk. We specialise in delivering papers that can be highly sensitive and/or be destined for particularly slippery customers in awkward locations.

London Process Servers

While Blackhawk is indeed a company with global reach, through its network of partners and agents, we are first and foremost a London process server. We’ve worked with solicitors, specialist law firms, corporate legal departments, and private individuals in providing London process serving service. Naturally, we offer the same service through the country, delivering court papers and legal documents. Combined with our specialist people tracing service, we offer a highly competitive search, find and serve service, to deliver and serve service that hopefully is the first part in successfully bringing resolution to your case. For more troublesome cases where you need to follow up with debt collection and recovery, we have our sister company to help you – Blue Stone.

Gone To Ground Abroad? We’ll Find The Defendant

Besides the UK, we operate across a wide range of countries in Europe, the Middle East and elsewhere.

Defendants based in the UK and abroad will often go to great lengths to avoid being present when a process server is in town, Civil Procedure Rules dictate when you need to use this method of personal delivery, a task which, when carried out, immediately puts the onus on the defendant to comply with a court order, such as a subpoena.

International process serving is a key strength for Blackhawk, given our international network and abilities to work across borders and under multi-jurisdictional circumstances.

How To Call Your Opponent’s Bluff

Sometimes, even when court rules don’t apply, it’s worth using a process server to call your opponent’s bluff, if you suspect they may allege they did not receive documents sent via first-class post.

And, of course, the very act of being served with official papers can prove the final wake-up call for many defendants and scare them into settling out of court – often the best outcome in more personal disputes.

And Our Main Customers Are…?

We work for a wide range of clients such as lawyers, solicitors, government agencies, local authorities, businesses, and private individuals based both in the UK and abroad. Typical cases where we are called into process serve include:

• high court and county court summons or claims form
• court orders
• divorce petitions
• family proceedings
• bankruptcy or winding up petitions
• injunctions
• statutory demands
• occupation orders
• writs and citations
• license applications

Process serving is generally straightforward but, with often so much at stake, we have to stick to strict court rules when countering defendants’ evasion tactics.

Blackhawk Focus on the ‘Sensitive and Difficult’

We will attempt to deliver whenever and wherever we believe the intended recipient to be and, though we can never give a 100% guarantee of delivery, we are known for a high success rate in, particularly difficult and sensitive cases.

In the event of non-delivery, we can provide a statement detailing our actions which can then mean you can apply for substituted service, ie ask the court to allow some other method of delivery – an issue that often arises when tracking down a spouse in divorce proceedings.

You may also be interested in our Complete Guide to Process Serving.

Process Server Backed by Tracing Service

Don’t forget that as an investigation agency Blackhawk also operates a highly sophisticated people tracing service, which we can use to help solve initial problems in serving papers when the recipient has “disappeared”. Whatever the outcome, we’ll keep you informed every step of the way.

Finally, we offer a word of warning with apologies if it may seem obvious: if you are about to have someone served with a court order … please don’t tell them.

To find out more about our process server service in London or Internationally, or to arrange a free consultation, please call us on +44 (0)20 8108 9317.