Panama City (850) 914-9488
Pensacola (850) 264-2917
Fort Walton Beach (850) 659-6785
Milton (850) 462-8308
Mobile, AL (251) 406-8009
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March Newsletter

Message from the Founder

It’s Official!

We have exciting news, Accurate Serve of Gainesville will be open for business April 1, 2019. New Owner/Operator, Jared Williams, is currently attending franchise training. Jared is a great addition to the Accurate Serve family and we are happy to have him on board.

Accurate Serve of Gainesville will cover the entire 8th Circuit, and Putnam County, for the AS team. So, if you are an Attorney in one of these counties: Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Gilchrist, Levy, Union or Putnam – starting April 1, 2019 – Jared will be your point of contact with Accurate Serve. If you are an Atty in another county, nothing changes with your point of contact – just know that you will be getting an upgrade in service in that area as we can ensure papers are served the Accurate Serve way.

Once again, to ensure your office is directed to the correct contact person at Accurate Serve, please visit our franchise website and below:

  • If you are an attorney in Hardee, Highlands, Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas or Polk County, please contact Beau with the Tampa/Lakeland/St. Petersburg/New Port Richey offices.
  • If you are an attorney in Duval, Clay, Nassau or St. John’s County please contact Brennan with the Jacksonville/Orange Park/St. Augustine offices.
  • If you are an attorney in Leon, Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Liberty or Wakulla County please contact Brennan with the Tallahassee office.
  • If you are an attorney in Orange, Osceola or Seminole County please contact Kevin with the Orlando/Kissimmee/Lake Mary offices.
  • If you are an attorney in Charlotte, Collier, Hendry, Glades or Lee County please contact Brandon with the Fort Myers/Labelle/Naples/Port Charlotte offices.
  • If you are an attorney in Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe or Palm Beach County please contact Josh with the Plantation/Miami/West Palm Beach/Key West offices.
  • If you are an attorney in Manatee, DeSoto or Sarasota County, please contact Brennan with the Bradenton/Sarasota offices.
  • If you are an attorney in Escambia, Okaloosa or Santa Rosa County (or Mobile, AL) please contact Brennan with the Pensacola/Milton/Mobile/Fort Walton Beach offices.
  • If you are an attorney in Brevard, Flagler or Volusia County please contact Josh with the Daytona Beach/Titusville/Palm Coast offices.
  • If you are an attorney in Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Marion or Sumter County please contact Kevin with the Ocala/Clermont/Inverness/The Villages/Spring Hill offices.
  • If you are an attorney in St Lucie, Okeechobee, Martin or Indian River County, please contact Brandon with the Port St Lucie/Stuart/Vero Beach/Okeechobee offices.

Warmest regards,
Beau Charlet

Franchisee Spotlight: Sarasota

We love to get a chance to interact with our clients! 

Once a month, the daily hustle and bustle of working in a law firm – quick updates, voice mail messages and phone calls get replaced with a casual chat about family, vacations, or sometimes we’re still talking about work because we get to do what we love! In Sarasota, we sponsor and attend the monthly dinner for the local PAF Suncoast Chapter. There is a chance you know us from those meetings. If you are reading this you have been a client of Accurate Serve at least once before; you may have found us online, you may have heard about us from a work colleague, or maybe you met us when we walked into your office to introduce ourselves! 

When we attend these dinners and luncheons, we get to sit in on the CLE classes and broaden our understanding of the legal industry, as well as get a deeper understanding of the type of day to day challenges our clients face. This will allow us to make business decisions that are in line with what our clients need. In the long-term, our business goals must be the same as our clients. We strive to delight our clients each and every day, with each and every service of process.

The Suncoast Chapter has lively meetings on the 2nd floor of Marina Jacks each month. Last November, it was a Trivia Night theme where the room was split into teams and the attorney who was the speaker/emcee for the event would ask questions and then explain the answers when it was time for me (the scorekeeper) to tally up the scores. Certainly this was more entertaining than a dissertation on the subject matter would have been. 

More recently, the Suncoast Chapter showed up on the Sarasota County Bar Association’s newsletter, “The Docket”, for their seminar ” Be a CSI for a day and Help Determine if Goldilocks was Guilty of Eating Baby Bears Porridge”. With Chief Judge of the 12th Circuit Charles Williams as the emcee, this event took an in-depth view of the various technologies, and procedures throughout the criminal proceedings. This included a mock trial with an jury bringing back a verdict of NOT GUILTY. 

If you are a paralegal without a certification and you have been doing it for years and are essentially self taught, there are still benefits to coming out and socializing with your professional peers. Good food and good friends is always a great deal!

Accurate Serve has decided to take it a step further and sponsor PAF on the Statewide level. We look forward to being a supporting cast for paralegals around the state.

– Brennan Fogarty

Need our help?
Call (941) 586-7897 or
Email serve@accurateservesarasota.com

Visit the Sarasota Website
QUICK TIDBIT!
If you email us a new serve and it is a RUSH, please let us know. Putting “Rush” in the Subject line will only help.  Our routine service is an attempt within 4 business days (but we like to be quicker).  Rush is an attempt within 24 hours. Same day serve is when you tell us we need this paper served today no matter what.

March Dates to Remember

3/1/12 – Tampa Office Opened For Business
3/1 – Employee Appreciation Day
3/6 – Ash Wednesday
3/8 – International Women’s Day
3/10 Daylight Savings
3/17 – Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
3/20 – First Day of Spring

“People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.” – Teddy Roosevelt
February 2019 Job Statistics

February 2019 Job Count – 4,042

Average Number of Days from Receiving Paper to Paper Being Served* – 4.87

*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.

CLICK HERE TO FIND YOUR ACCURATE SERVE LOCATION

Avoiding Delays in Divorce Proceedings

Going through a divorce can be a very trying time in your life. In addition to dealing with the emotional pain as well as the pain and confusion of any children you may have, you also have to deal with the court system to get your divorce finalized. There are a lot of obstacles that can come up that can delay your divorce proceedings.

Not Knowing the Location of Your Spouse

If you do not know the location of your spouse since the breakup, you may find that you have difficulty getting divorced. In any divorce proceeding in any state, you must provide notice to your spouse that you have filed for divorce before it can be granted. Your spouse has to have the opportunity to respond to the divorce petition.

If your spouse has moved, changed jobs, or is otherwise missing from your life, you may have difficulty serving them notice of the divorce. While there are some provisions for this circumstance, such as service by publication, these options are usually not granted by the courts until all other options for service are exhausted. If you hire a good process server, they can often locate your spouse and get the papers delivered using a variety of means to track them down. Continue reading

February Newsletter

Message from the Founder

The Groundhog Results

Every February 2, the world turns to the groundhog to predict the weather and either gives us good news or bad. Luckily for us, this year, Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow. Great news one and all, an early spring is in store for us.

What does that mean for the process serving industry? Well, in FL, not much. But for our colleagues in the northern states, this is great news.  Some states like Michigan, Wisconsin, etc. have days where they can’t even open their doors. If you can’t get outside of your house due to snow, blizzard, or other elements, then it’s real tough to get process served.

Whether it’s snow, rain, hail, hurricanes, etc., just know, we are open for business and are always serving papers. We encourage all of our process servers to drive and be safe on the roads, safety is always the number one concern.  And the number two concern is serving your papers as quickly and accurately as possible. Our organization is like no other process serving company out there. Our team is dedicated to the profession and we thank you for the continued trust you place in us to serve your papers.

Warmest regards,
Beau Charlet

Franchisee Spotlight: Plantation

Greetings to everyone who may be reading, I am Josh Wright. For those of you who don’t know, I operate the offices in South Florida, Accurate Serve of Plantation.  Accurate Serve of Plantation offices cover the Tri-County area in South Florida including Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade County. In addition, we have expanded our local areas in 2019 to Marathon county, serving the Florida Keys. From everyone here at Accurate Serve, we want to thank you for your continued loyalty to our company in 2018 and years prior. 
If the Plantation office is your point of contact, I ask that you visit the “Send Work” portal on our website. If you did not already know, we have a portal on our website where a representative from your firm can upload a new service request. We recommend using our portal because we can send the documents to our servers faster. When using this upload feature the documents are exported directly to our secure office database and sent to the server assigned in that area. An email will be sent to your firm, confirming your upload was successful. If you have any questions about using the portal, please give us a call or visit our website. 
In 2019, Accurate Serve of Plantation plans to expand our knowledge in the process serving industry, support our local legal community and continue to improve or communication and services utilizing technology. We are always striving to meet our promises and limit our complications that may occur from normal business operations.
In honor of Black History Month, I like to share with you a thought: Martin Luther King Jr is a legend. “I have a dream”, the famous speech spoken on August 28, 1963, rings familiar to just about everyone. It is important to step back and take a look at the bigger picture to remind yourself, we are all chasing our dreams. Although our roads may lead different paths, we are on this journey together and each of us bring different values to the table. These very values is why we all need to respect, admire and share with one another. 
We look forward to upcoming seasons and continuing to grow in 2019. Thank you for your time, have a great year everyone.

– Joshua Wright

Need our help?
Call (954) 770-9997 or
Email josh@accurateserveplantation.com

Visit the Plantation Website
QUICK TIDBIT!

Each one of our AS offices has a Send Work tab on their respective websites. If you prefer to upload the documents to our secure database, you may utilize that feature. If you prefer to email the docs to us, that is great as well, please be sure to email the main contact email for your local AS office.

February Dates to Remember

 2/1/12 St. Augustine and Orange Park branches opened for business
2/2 Ground Hog Day
2/14 Happy Valentine’s Day!
2/18 President’s Day
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” – Helen Keller
January 2019 Job Statistics

January 2019 Job Count – 4,892

Average Number of Days from Receiving Paper to Paper Being Served* – 4.75

*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.

CLICK HERE TO FIND YOUR ACCURATE SERVE LOCATION

How to Serve Divorce Papers Across State Lines

Divorce can be a complicated matter, and it is made even more complicated when you and your spouse do not live in the same state. Once you have a lawyer help you determine the appropriate jurisdiction for your divorce, you then have the obligation to notify your spouse that you have filed for divorce and give them a chance to respond.

Why Service is Important

There is a requirement by any court in any state that you must serve your spouse with notification of the divorce. This service generally has to be done in such a way that there can be no question your spouse received the notification. Usually this requires in-person service. While there are other options than in-person service, such as publication or certified mail, it is up to the judge whether or not these are valid options. Generally, you will need to attempt in-person service before other options will be made available by the judge.

Hiring a Process Server

The best way to serve your spouse with divorce papers out of state is through a process server. A process server can be hired across state lines. You will need to hire a process server who resides in the state and county in which your spouse resides. In some cases, such as in Florida, the process server must be registered and certified with the county in order to serve papers. This generally means you cannot hire a local process server to travel across state lines to serve the papers, even if you live near the border of your state. Continue reading

January Newsletter

Message from the Founder

To the Power of 10

Happy New Year!!!! 2019 marks an important year for us here at Accurate Serve. Accurate Serve was founded in Lakeland, FL in 2009.  So, this is our 10th year in business, proudly serving the legal community. Accurate Serve has grown from a one man operation serving 624 papers in Year 1 to over 35 offices in FL (and 1 in AL) and 54,342 papers served in 2018. Our team of Owners/Operators are dedicated to the profession. We truly understand the role we play in the legal process and the importance of getting individuals and businesses served quickly and accurately.

The more offices we add, the better we can serve you.  In 2019, we have big plans on expansion. Firstly, our S FL offices have branched down into the Keys and should be opening a Monroe office shortly. We have 3 markets left in FL that we hope to open soon once we find the right Owner/Operators: Accurate Serve of Gainesville, Accurate Serve of Lake City and Accurate Serve of Panama City. After that, our next goal is Accurate Serve of Charlotte, NC, Accurate Serve of Atlanta, GA and Accurate Serve of Washington DC.

While not every serve is as easy as 1-2-3, since we have served so many papers over the years, we know how to respond in every situation. You can put your trust in us to serve your papers quickly and accurately. You can put your trust in us to always work hard to get the job done. We look forward to the continued opportunity to earn your business and the trust you have placed with us for your service needs.

Warmest regards,
Beau Charlet

Franchisee Spotlight: Fort Myers

What a year 2018 was! Accurate Serve Fort Myers had its best year yet, serving a record number of jobs throughout the state & nation as well as creating new business relationships within our community and most importantly giving back to the community.
This month we want to remind you that we are not just here for your local services within the 20th circuit but we also specialize in Statewide, Nationwide and International Service. We have trusted servers throughout the nation who serve our documents to Florida Statutes, quickly and accurately. Using our office for nationwide service allows you to keep one contact for all of your serving needs and in doing so, you will be updated on all of our efforts as well as job completion. Just like serving within the state we will provide you with the return of service for e-filing once it is signed.
Our limitations of service do not stop at the national borders. Our office has served multiple individuals outside of the United States, both through the Hague Convention as well as through private process servers, so we can walk you through the steps and keep you informed on the process. When you have to serve someone internationally you can simply reach out to our office, or your local Accurate Serve Office, to provide us with the location of service and the document size so that we can give you an accurate quote. The location simply does not matter as we have successfully served multiple people throughout Canada, South America, Central America, Ireland, Germany, China, England and Japan. If we have to translate the documents to be served we can do that too, just get us the docs so we can get you a quote on translation! Do not let location of service stop you from contacting your local Accurate Serve office as we are always ready to help our clients complete a job no matter where the subject may be located.

One of the biggest accomplishments in 2018 for Owner Brandon Muscato was the amount of support that we received for the Hurricane Food Drive in which Accurate Serve teamed up with the Mid West Food Bank of SWFL. The drive started after Hurricane Florence devastated our neighbors in and around N.C. In a three week period our local clients in the 20th Circuit brought in more than $7500 of food and cleaning supplies to help those individuals. Our efforts were actually so persistent that when Hurricane Michael hit the Pan Handle we were able to reroute over $2k of those collected goods to people in need after Michael as well. Actions like this and being able to bring our community together to help others in need is what truly makes owning and operating a business worthwhile. Brandon will continue to be involved with the community through his Rotary Club, other non for profits and random acts of kindness. We are beyond thankful for the support we received in 2018 and look forward to what 2019 and the upcoming years have in store.

Need our help?
Call (239) 822-7299 or
Email brandon@accurateserveftmyers.com

Photos From Our Food Drive
Visit the Fort Myers Website
QUICK TIDBIT!

We added a new “Find Your AS Office” feature on our franchise website. It’s a fun little tool that allows new prospective clients to quickly find the correct Accurate Serve location to contact for their service needs. If you are a new client, or established, check out the button and play around with it, it’s really cool!

January Dates to Remember

1/1/15 Opened Kissimmee and Lake Mary offices
1/1/16 Opened Naples Office
1/1/16 Opened Plantation Office
1/1/17 Opened Ft. Walton Beach & Milton offices
1/1/17 Opened Palm Coast Office
1/1/17 Opened West Palm Beach Office
1/1/17 Opened Daytona Beach Office
1/1/17 Opened St. Petersburg
1/1/17 Opened New Port Richey Office
“Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one.” – Brad Paisley
December 2018 Job Statistics

December 2018 Job Count – 4,259

Average Number of Days from Receiving Paper to Paper Being Served* – 4.7

*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.

CLICK HERE TO FIND YOUR ACCURATE SERVE LOCATION

How to Serve Divorce Papers When One Spouse is Hard to Find

Divorce is often a messy, emotional, and stressful process. This is especially true for couples who don’t mutually agree to their divorce. The spouse who files for a divorce is known as the plaintiff, and that person has a legal requirement to serve a copy of the divorce petition and summons with the other spouse, known as the defendant. This seemingly simple task of delivering papers to the defendant’s home becomes very difficult if that spouse no longer has a confirmed address. So what should you do if you can’t locate your spouse in order to serve divorce papers and get such an important process started? Continue reading

Understanding Your Bankruptcy Papers

Nobody ever expects to come face to face with bankruptcy, but financial problems have a tendency to arise unexpectedly and spiral out of control. While some people can overcome their debt, others have no path forward without declaring bankruptcy. If you are one of the millions of Americans currently facing bankruptcy, you may fear that every noise outside is a process server coming to serve your court papers.

This may be especially true if your bankruptcy situation is different from the majority of cases seen each year. Most cases involve a defendant discharging debts that he or she cannot pay, but some people also become defendants in adversary proceedings. An adversary proceeding is a separate lawsuit filed within your bankruptcy case when a creditor or bankruptcy trustee files a complaint. A creditor might challenge your ability to discharge their debt, or a trustee might seek to regain property that you sold before your bankruptcy. These added complications can make the bankruptcy process even more miserable. Continue reading

Will Body Cameras Also become Required for Process Servers?

It is no secret that most police officers now wear body cameras to provide clear and unbiased visual evidence in the case of a crime or troubling event. However, police officers aren’t the only ones who must frequently place themselves in harm’s way to do their jobs. Process servers also find themselves in risky and potentially violent situations when they serve papers to recipients that respond with anger and violence.

It is for this reason that in 2016, Illinois State Representative La Shawn K. Ford introduced Illinois Bill HB 6327, which would require process servers to wear body cameras if completing service of process in counties with populations of more than three million people. According to the language of the bill, the bill would require process servers to record all attempts to serve process. In addition, the process server company would be responsible for storing the video data until the case in question had been fully adjudicated. Continue reading

Handling Your Taxes as a Process Server

Taxes can’t be avoided, and it’s officially the time of year when tax deadlines start to loom. Each profession lends its own unique requirements to tax time, and that includes process servers. To avoid being served papers by a fellow process server for tax delinquencies, it’s important for all process servers to properly compile and file their taxes with precision.

Be Proactive: Keep Close Records

If you don’t keep adequate records of your expenses and income throughout the fiscal year, you will find yourself with a complicated nightmare when you sit down to file your taxes. Sales, payroll, purchases, and supporting documents should all be part of your record keeping process. Continue reading

The Different Ways a Subpoena Could Impact You

A subpoena might sound like something that belongs strictly in episodes of Law & Order, but the truth is that you might find yourself served with a subpoena without expecting it. Since subpoenas come in many different forms and are governed by specific laws, it might be helpful to understand the basics.

What is a Subpoena?

At its most basic form, a subpoena is a court-ordered demand to do some specific action. There are two main types of subpoenas: the kind that requests that you provide a specific document, and the kind that requests your appearance in court to testify or provide some type of information. The majority of subpoenas relate to divorce, child custody, personal injury, and criminal cases. For example, a doctor might receive a subpoena for blood test information, or an employer might receive a subpoena to provide employee records. Other document examples include medical bills, computer files, and income tax returns. When people are asked to speak in court themselves, it is because they might have information that is pertinent to the case. It is important to know that a subpoena is not an optional request. If you fail to complete the task demanded in your subpoena, you can be fined and/or put in jail. Continue reading

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