Standard process serving

The ordinary civil serve

Standard process serving is the in-person job most files use when the hearing is not tomorrow. The price is $150. The first attempt is within 1–3 days. Four attempts are included at the address on the order. We are licensed and bonded, and we serve San Diego County. A witness fee is the check written to that person. The order adds 8% or $4.00, whichever is greater.

People send small claims packets, summonses, complaints, subpoenas, and other civil documents on this service. We carry what you upload. We do not decide whether those papers are the right ones, and we do not calculate a deadline for you. If the date is tight, look at next day or same day instead of hoping the 1–3 day window lands early.

The one-to-three-day window

Day one is the day we process the order, or the next business day if you ordered after closing. Office hours are Mon–Fri, 7am–5pm PST. An order at 6pm sits until the next morning. The first attempt then falls inside the following 1–3 days. We do not treat a weekend as a service day.

Service attempts are also made outside of these office hours.

Four attempts does not mean four attempts on the first day. We come back at different times when the first trip misses. We cannot promise the person will be home. If you know a narrow hour when they are there, a specific date and time add-on is $30. If someone must wait, that is a stakeout, and the office has to confirm the hours.

Proof and a declaration if service fails

Self-represented people get the proof of service/declaration mailed to San Diego County courts at no extra charge. You receive a copy by email for your records. Other courts, and cases a lawyer will file, get the proof returned to you. We do not walk it into a courthouse on this $150 price. Hand delivery of a proof is a drop-box filing.

If the four attempts are exhausted and the person was not served, you receive a declaration of due diligence. It lists the attempts. It does not tell the court what to do, and it is not a substitute for reading the rules yourself or asking a lawyer. Notarization of that paper, or of the proof, is $40 per signature.

Rural towns and extra people

An extra person at the same address is $40 on standard service, the same as on same day and next day. The fee is for in-person serves only. A roommate at a different apartment number is a different address, and that is a separate serve. Say both names in the order when they share a door.

Outlying towns cost $45 more and include three attempts, not four. The towns are Jamul, Alpine, Ramona, Fallbrook, Lakeside, Valley Center, and Bonsall. Extra-rural back country is $100 and two attempts. Call the office before you order those. We will say whether the drive is one we can take. Do not assume the checkout will catch a back-country road.

Printing, a second case, and a base

The first 40 pages of printing are included. After that, printing is $.30 per page. An additional case on the same serve is $30. That covers another caption: court, number, parties, and hearing. Upload each set of papers with the job it belongs to so the proof names the right case.

Service on a San Diego County military base is a $65 add-on, not part of the $150. Base approval is required, and fees are refunded if the attempt cannot be arranged. A person in jail is incarceration service, and it is not on this form.