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Using a Process Server v.s. the Local Sheriff to Serve Papers

In Florida, you must hire either a certified private process server or local law enforcement to serve process in your court cases. 

Some types of criminal process, like arrest warrants, must be served by a sheriff’s deputy to be valid. This is for obvious safety reasons. However, using a private process server to deliver the types of process which they are permitted to serve is a smart move. Here, we will discuss the benefits of hiring a private process server as opposed to using the local sheriff.

Process servers are hyper-focused

Your local law enforcement already has a lot to do. The police handle everything from misdemeanors to capital felonies, which means there are many laws and regulations they must know. For crimes that they deal with often, such as thefts and assaults, it’s easy to remember the associated laws.

However, police may not serve process often, so recalling all of the relevant laws is more difficult. For example, a sheriff’s deputy may not know that you can’t serve process on a Sunday in Florida, or that the process must be delivered in person to the individual named in the documents unless special permission has been given for service by substitution. They also may not know how to request service by publication in the event that they cannot locate the intended recipient of the court documents.

Knowing all of the relevant laws is essential to getting the process in your case served quickly and lawfully. By hiring a private and certified process server, you will improve the chances of your case’s process being served successfully!

Process servers are faster

Defendants, witnesses, and other court case stakeholders must be given an adequate amount of time to prepare according to federal and state laws. This means that the process needs to be served quickly in all cases to give everyone enough time to prepare a defense. The exact amount of required time differs depending on the case type. Missing a process service deadline means the court date must be rescheduled. Defendants have even successfully claimed that late service of process affected their case significantly enough to warrant dismissal@ At Accurate Serve® in Pensacola, we serve process as quickly as possible, even to individuals who would rather not be found.

Process servers prioritize communication

Another advantage of hiring a certified private process server is enhanced communication. Law enforcement just doesn’t have the time to keep you updated on every step of the process. By using one of our servers at Accurate Serve®, you’re always updated with our 24/7 online status tracker, available right on our website. We’ll notify you as soon as your process is successfully served and if there are any delays. We can even guide you in requesting permission for service by substitution or publication when necessary.

If you need a reliable process server in Pensacola, visit us online to find the phone number of your closest office today! Our certified process servers will make sure everyone related to your case is properly and promptly served, without taking up any valuable law enforcement resources.

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