Help! I Can’t Contact My Spouse To Serve Divorce Documents! Can I Use Facebook As A Service of Process Instead?
Are you filing for divorce? How exactly do you let your spouse know? The answer is by service of process! Service of process is when you file official court documents and notify your spouse with them. Service of Process arises from the United States Constitution. Specifically the Due Process language in the Constitution doesn’t allow, “personal jurisdiction over a defendant unless the defendant has proper notice of the court’s proceedings.” This essentially means that the defendant will have to be properly served with the court documents.
These court documents include the Complaint for Divorce, Court Summons and associated pleadings (Financial Affidavit, Parenting Proceeding Affidavit, Family Questionnaire, complaint for Divorce and Title IV-D Application for Child Support Services). Nevertheless, there are specific court rules around this crucial step, and they can vary on where you file for divorce. However, the rules that govern service of process can vary by jurisdiction meaning state or county rules.