Update on E-Signing

We did a Newsletter article in June 2019 about the signing of House Bill 91, and it’s ramifications.  One of those, was the fact that process servers could now e-sign their Returns in lieu of printing the Return, signing it and then scanning.  Once the new law had taken place, our software programmer worked diligently in incorporating an e-sign feature through the App our Servers use to update service jobs.  In the past month, Accurate Serve has e-signed over 2,000 Returns and the time from papers getting served to the time our Clients have received their Returns has drastically increased, which is awesome!!

We are always looking for ways to improve our processes and provide better service to our Clients.  The ideal goal is to receive your paper for service and get it out for service ASAP.  We want 100% of papers served right away and this happens a lot.  But, some papers are trickier than others (Halloween reference).  Just know serving your papers is our top priority.  If you ever have any info that can assist us in getting your papers served quicker, please let us know.  And if you ever need anything from us, we are here for you, just please reach out and let us know what we can do for you.

Warmest regards,
Beau Charlet

Accurate Serve® of Tallahassee is proud to partner with the people at PAF. October is going to be a great month for that relationship. October 23rd is National Paralegal Day! We are happy to announce that the Tallahassee chapter of PAF will be honored with an official Proclamation for Paralegal Day. The Mayor of Tallahassee, John Dailey will take part in a ceremony here in Tallahassee to honor the local paralegals integrity, professionalism, among many other contributions to the legal community.

Please take a look at the proclamation below! If you are a client of ours in the Tallahassee area, we will see you there!

– Brennan Fogarty

Need our help?
Call 850-519-5494 or
Email brennan.fogarty@accurateservetally.com

June 2019 Job Count – 4,557

Average Number of Days from Receiving Paper to Paper Being Served* – 4.29

*This includes jobs that may be on hold or waiting for new info.  There is no way to take those jobs out of the calculation.  So, if a job is placed on hold for 2 weeks, that’s 14 days on that job which factors in to this average. So, we’re even better than what the eyes see, LOL. Some papers get served same day, some next day and some take multiple attempts/addresses to effect service. All we do all day and every day is serve papers. We’re good at it and we love what we do. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to continue to serve your papers.

Back to School Special

All over the country, boys and girls of all ages are returning to the classrooms to broaden their minds and increase their knowledge bases. Below are a few categories of those ages and how it can affect or relate to service of process.

K – 8: What I want to touch on here is routines. If you are a parent, you generally wake up at the same time to get kids ready for school and out the door. So, most households are active early AM, this is a great time for residential serve attempts. Also, buses are everywhere. We stress to our Servers to always drive safe on the road and mind all traffic rules, stopping for buses, slowing down in school zones, etc.

9 – 12: This is the time kids start driving or catching rides to school from older friends or family members. If you are a parent in this age group, please stress to your child, or their driver, to always drive safe on the road and mind all traffic rules, stopping for buses, slowing down in school zones, etc. And NO texting and driving. It’s a real issue and it affects all of us.

College Age: Sometimes college kids return home to their families for the summer. Now, school is back in session, so if they were visiting home, they are back to school now.

Professionals: Professionals never stop learning. Industries change and you need to adapt. By continuing to educate yourself in your field, you can provide better service to your Clients. Our state association (FAPPS = FL Assoc of Professional Process Servers) holds a continuing education class each year and after attending the course and scoring a high enough grade, process servers can earn the AFPS designation. AFPS = Accredited FAPPS Process Server. I am proud to say that right now, 17% of the AFPS registry, are current Accurate Serve® Owners/Operators.

Warmest regards,
Beau Charlet

When we say everywhere… we mean EVERYWHERE!

If you need service of process in the Jacksonville area, feel free to send the docs along to our office! After we review the docs, we will give you a quote and get your documents out for service! With our team of in-house servers, we provide coverage for the Accurate Serve affiliates from the southern edge of St. Johns County to the Florida/Georgia border.

What if you need service elsewhere; in another state? Miami? Chicago? New York? The answer is the same! Feel free to send the docs- we will give you a quote and get to work!

We have been cultivating and contracting our service of process connections for the last 7 years to develop a nationwide network. If you can find it on a map, we can get somebody there!

What if the person we are looking for has fled the country? The answer is the same! Send along the docs, we can get you a quote and get right to work! When it comes to international service, your docs may need to go through the International Court of Justice at the Hague Convention. We will be able to help you along with this process, too.

No need to ask us for referrals, we are set up so that we can handle all of your service of process needs and facilitate service regardless of wherever it may need to go!

If you have multiple services going to various locations around the country, all you need to do is send the docs over and we can get them served for you. By using your local Accurate Serve for all your service of process needs, we can better serve you. Most importantly, you can spend your time on something that requires your expertise.

When it comes to service of process, leave it to the professionals at Accurate Serve®.

– Brennan Fogarty

Need our help?
Call (904) 735-7810 or
Email serve@accurateservejax.com

June 2019 Job Count – 4,826

Average Number of Days from Receiving Paper to Paper Being Served* – 4.92

*This includes jobs that may be on hold or waiting for new info.  There is no way to take those jobs out of the calculation.  So, if a job is placed on hold for 2 weeks, that’s 14 days on that job which factors in to this average. So, we’re even better than what the eyes see, LOL. Some papers get served same day, some next day and some take multiple attempts/addresses to effect service. All we do all day and every day is serve papers. We’re good at it and we love what we do. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to continue to serve your papers.

Recharge Those Batteries

Earlier this month our team had the great pleasure of coming together for our annual franchise retreat. This year’s Retreat was in St. Augustine, FL. The weekend started with a group dinner at Beaches of Vilano. After that, it was to the historic downtown area where many of the local drinking establishments were visited.

The next day started with a historical Segway tour of the city, which was awesome. Did you know there were pyramids in St. Augustine? What about the smallest street? Did you know they still have a pay phone that is operative? Only one of our team members have ever been on a Segway prior to that Saturday morning but after a tad bit of practice, we were all pros by the end. There was that one incident where Terrence crashed but that’s what happens when you try checking your email while on the Segway, LOL.

After the tour, some food and a little rest and relaxation and time at the beach. That night we had our second group dinner at A1A Ale Works and that place was amazing, highly recommend. Unfortunately by the time our large group sat and dined, we missed out on mini golf after dinner because they closed already. All that trash talking for nothing. It was a great weekend for the whole team and we all look forward to 2020’s retreat at the UF vs FSU football game in Tallahassee, FL.

Warmest regards,
Beau Charlet

Greetings to everyone who may be reading! I operate the Gainesville office, which opened on April 1, 2019. I would like to take this time and express how exciting it has been expanding the Accurate Serve brand in the Gainesville area and neighboring counties. The Gainesville office serves all counties in the 8th Judicial Circuit of Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Gilchrist, Levy and Union) along with Putnam County, which is in the 7th Circuit. Each of these counties require a motion and order to serve non-United States District Court documents, excluding subpoenas, within their borders. But no worries! Each Accurate Serve office has a motion and order template that we can promptly provide to you for filing with the court.

As a reference, please note that the following is a list of all Motion and Order counties in the State of Florida: Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Calhoun, Clay, Flagler, Gilchrist, Holmes, Levy, Nassau, Putnam, Union, Volusia and Washington. As a company dedicated to serving clients in a constantly changing profession, we strive to make this part of your work life as easy as possible by providing you with the peace of mind that your documents are in expert hands. I am looking forward to working with you in the very near future!

– Jared Williams

Need our help?
Call (352) 553-2009 or
Email jared@accurateservegainesville.com

June 2019 Job Count – 4,702

Average Number of Days from Receiving Paper to Paper Being Served* – 5.34

*This includes jobs that may be on hold or waiting for new info.  There is no way to take those jobs out of the calculation.  So, if a job is placed on hold for 2 weeks, that’s 14 days on that job which factors in to this average. So, we’re even better than what the eyes see, LOL. Some papers get served same day, some next day and some take multiple attempts/addresses to effect service. All we do all day and every day is serve papers. We’re good at it and we love what we do. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to continue to serve your papers.

Trademark Registered 

As we just passed the mid-way point of our 10th year in business, we continue to strive for 100% customer satisfaction. Serving your papers quickly and accurately is our number one concern. From e-filing to new technology to House Bill 91, Accurate Serve® stays committed to improving our service to better serve you.

Well, another way we can improve our organization is to strengthen it to it’s core. So, we are happy to say it is official. On July 2, 2019, The US Patent Office approved the registered trademark for Accurate Serve®.

So, what’s the difference between the “™” and the “®”?

The “®” means that trademark has been registered with the government body in that county, so in this case, the U.S. The “™” means the trademark is in use by a company but not registered yet with the government.

Why is having the “®” important?

• Communication is Key – Having the  “®” lets clients know who they are dealing with. You can expect a a level of consistency when using a franchise system like Accurate Serve® and our unparalleled communication.
• Take That, Rewind it Back – Having the  “®” allows potential returning clients to recount on the service they received prior from an Accurate Serve® office and that positive experience helps to solidify the experience.
• Stability – We have been at this for 10 years and each year we add more offices, serve more papers and we love it.  By registering our trademark, you know we’ll be here at least another 10 years.

We love what we do. We are good at it. We are educated, licensed, appointed, certified, registered and always available to serve your papers.

Warmest regards,
Beau Charlet

We are in the heat of summer! July brings in some of the hottest days of our year here in Florida which results in many of our part time residents heading back to their northern addresses, or maybe even out of the nation. What does this mean for your case and your service of process?

Once you have sent us the job and we have ruled out their local address our team has the ability to go to the next step for you. What if you don’t have their second address? Let us help locate it for you by running a skip trace. Once we have the second address we have a network of servers throughout the nation that work with our team on a regular basis to provide the best possible service. If they are residents of another country, still no problem! We have successfully served around the world by Private Process as well as The Hague Convention. No matter the location of service or the number of addresses to attempt, our team can handle the process far and wide and keep you updated on all the steps along the way.

Last week I had the Privilege of being a vendor at the Paralegal Association of Florida Treasure Coast Chapter Summer Seminar. It was a fantastic turn out with nearly 60 paralegals in attendance. I can not be more thankful to President Kristen Remling for this opportunity as well as all of the Paralegals who attended and showed my family a very warm welcoming. Marketing Director Avery Rose and Meaghan Muscato are looking forward to the next event to attend and show our support for PAFTCC. Our team looks forward to the opportunity to earn your business! Knock knock knock…. You’ve been served!

Need our help?
Call (772) 236-7214 or
Email brandon@accurateserveportstlucie.com

June 2019 Job Count – 4,176

Average Number of Days from Receiving Paper to Paper Being Served* – 4.8

*This includes jobs that may be on hold or waiting for new info.  There is no way to take those jobs out of the calculation.  So, if a job is placed on hold for 2 weeks, that’s 14 days on that job which factors in to this average. So, we’re even better than what the eyes see, LOL. Some papers get served same day, some next day and some take multiple attempts/addresses to effect service. All we do all day and every day is serve papers. We’re good at it and we love what we do. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to continue to serve your papers.

Florida House Bill 91 Has Been Signed

Over the past several years, our state association (FAPPS) has been working our our lobbyist to amend some of the verbiage in the Statutes that pertain to service of process. While some of the changes are minimal, such as changing the wording from may to shall in 48.021, some changes are pretty big.

One of the big changes is that Process Servers are now allowed to electronically sign Returns of Service. The Statutes previously allowed only the Sheriff to utilize an electronic signature, but now the Sheriff and Private Process Servers can electronically sign Returns. At Accurate Serve, we are ahead of the game in technology and with our Servers using their smart phones and App to update jobs, they will soon be able to electronically sign their Returns from the field on their mobile devices. So, our FL Clients should be getting those returns even quicker in the very near future.

See below for a few highlights of the changes and see attached for the complete Bill.

48.031 (5) – The statute now reads you must place the date and hour of service, your initials or signature, and, IF APPLICABLE, your identification number.

Summary: This change was created to address issues in counties where process servers are serving by Motion and Order (or out of state) and do not have an identification number. It also re-affirms that you only have to place the required information on the first page of the process served. This does not change the requirement to follow the Rules of Civil Procedure to also include the date and hour of service on the original process filed with the return of service or affidavit.

48.21 Return of Service – updated to clarify language that all pleadings and documents served must be listed on the return of service. Electronic signatures are now permitted.

Reminder: If your jurisdiction requires a notarized affidavit you will not be able to utilize an electronic signature. This also includes counties where the process server is serving by Motion and Order. Rules of Civil Procedure require that an affidavit is required when serving by Motion and Order.

Warmest regards,
Beau Charlet

Timeless Classics and Summer Serving 

Welcome to the Jungle – A day in the life of a process server in central Florida.

Schools Out for the Summer – This means our odds increase in residential serves with co-residents 15+ being home and able to accept service.

Double Trouble – May 31st started 100 days of summer heat.  It goes without saying that with the rising temperature comes an increase in not only tourists but also auto accidents and DUIs.  Subpoenas to be served upon law enforcement officials through the department liaison must be effected 5 days prior to the court date. This does not include the date of service, court date, weekends and federal holidays in which the courts are closed.

Rock You like a Hurricane – June 1st marks the beginning of hurricane season.  Even inland in The Sunshine State we are effected by hurricanes.  Torrential rain and poor weather conditions means possible delays in service.  Let’s not forget FEMA holds on foreclosures.

Don’t Stop Believing –  Every service is a journey. Florida is notoriously known for snowbirds. It’s possible that the defendant has migrated back north for the summer. We have a network of servers with which we have established relationships to better handle all of your nationwide needs. Don’t have their summer address?  In efforts to locate the defendant or witness we can run a skip trace to produce any other addresses available on record.

Taking Care of Business,

Your Accurate Serve Ocala Team

Need our help?
Call (352) 278-2188 or
Email kevin@accurateserveocala.com

May 2019 Job Count – 4,549

Average Number of Days from Receiving Paper to Paper Being Served* – 4.09

*This includes jobs that may be on hold or waiting for new info.  There is no way to take those jobs out of the calculation.  So, if a job is placed on hold for 2 weeks, that’s 14 days on that job which factors in to this average. So, we’re even better than what the eyes see, LOL. Some papers get served same day, some next day and some take multiple attempts/addresses to effect service. All we do all day and every day is serve papers. We’re good at it and we love what we do. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to continue to serve your papers.