How to serve a Small Claims in California

First off, let me say, that if you want to hire someone to help you prepare a Small Claims packet for filing with court, my company, ACTIVE LEGAL PROCESS SOLUTIONS can help. If you visit our website, http://www.activelegalprocess.com/ , you can download our Small Claims Request Form on the "Services & Pricing" tab. Our rate is extremely reasonable and you can rest assured knowing that your documents will be prepared, filed, and served by an experienced professional. But maybe you're a do yourself kind of guy or gal and want to gain a little knowledge into the process, well this is the article for you!! I live in Kern County, but there may be others who read this article that are in other counties. I know that our court http://www.kern.courts.ca.gov/ has a really great Small Claims help section that you can check out, it answers lots of questions. Also, to download a copy of the Small Claims packet, go to ttp://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/forms/. Very easy and saves a trip to court to pick one up. The form is fairly self explanatory, you will fill out your name and address (you will be the Plaintiff), the Defendant's name and address (the person you will be serving who owes you the money), the amount you are suing for (only sue for what you can prove in court....receipts or estimates are good to have in court), the date the incident took place, a brief description of why you are suing, and a couple yes or no questions. The court also requires that you the Plaintiff have tried to collect the debt from the Defendant through verbal or written contact to no avail. Another thing to consider when you file is that you are within the Statute of Limitations, a common law system designed to set forth the amount of time that a certain individual or business has to proceed with a legal claim. Each state is different, but in California the Statutes are as follows: A written contract is 4 years, an oral contract is 2 years, personal injury is 2 years, and property damage is 3 years. If you are past your time to file, you're unfortunately out of luck! Once you have filled out your package, you must file the documents in the appropriate court. The court you file in is the "venue". This is determined by a couple factors, either where the contract was written or performed, or where the Defendant resides, where the property was damaged, etc. The court will also require a filing fee. To view the filing fees, visit your court's website, most have a section that addresses filing fees. The fee depends upon the amount you're suing for, the higher the amount, the higher the filing fee. Once the documents have been filed, the court will return your documents with a hearing date and time, this is when I suggest hiring a professional process server!! There are time constraints that must be followed!! In California, when serving an individual in the same county in which the documents were filed, you must personally serve them at least 15 days prior to court, or sub-serve them 20 days prior to court. When serving an individual in a county outside the county in which the documents were filed, you must personally serve the individual 25 days prior to court, or sub-serve them 30 days prior to court. Personal service is self explanatory, this is when you personally serve the named Defendant. Sub-service is when you serve a spouse or co-tenant over 18, or a co-worker where the Defendant is employed (if sub-serving, you will also be required to mail a copy to the Defendant to complete service). Once you have successfully served the documents, you must fill out a Proof of Service and file it with the court. Here in Kern county, Proofs of Service must be filed within 5 business days of the hearing (the sooner the better in case there are any problems with the Proof, you'll have time to make corrections). Once your Proof of Service is filed, you are pretty much just waitin' for your hearing. Hopefully you'll be collecting your moolah!!  Best wishes :)

Most Frequently Asked Questions About Process Serving

I'm kind of experiencing writer's block right now and haven't been able to sit down and commit myself to actually writing something worth reading....so....I thought I'd do a little Q&A with some of the questions I'm asked frequently from my In Pro Per clients and the folks that don't have much knowledge about process servers and process serving. At least a few times a month I'm asked what hours I serve and how often I make attempts. I offer two types of service, routine (first attempt within 72 hours), and rush (first attempt within 24 hours). As an example, for a routine serve in Bakersfield I charge $40.00 for one address and will make random attempts in the morning, noon, and night, and on weekends until the documents are served, or I am able to determine the house is empty or the people being served have moved. On a rush, I charge a total of $60 for one address in Bakersfield and will attempt the same morning, noon, night, weekend times, but will do so on a daily basis. I don't serve too late at night, and find that I have the best luck in the morning around 8am or the early afternoon around 3-5 pm. Another question I'm asked quite frequently is "what if they don't want to take the papers from you". Although I don't run into this problem very often, I do occasionally have to perform what is known as a "drop serve". A drop serve is done when you have made a positive ID on your mark and they will not willingly take the papers from you, and you are forced to announce service and drop the papers in as close a proximity to the person served as possible. This is why I strongly suggest using a licensed, professional process server. If a drop serve does occur, I will prepare a strong Declaration of Facts to add to my Proof of Service. In my Declaration of Facts I will meticulously outline the date and time I arrived at the property, the attitude of the mark, anything they may have said prior to the drop serve, and a detailed physical description. You may even be asking, what is a Proof of Service? Well, a Proof of Service is a form that is filled out and usually filed with the court after the documents have been served. A Proof of Service in California generally includes the date and time of service, the address where the party was served, the case information...Plaintiff..Defendant..case number, etc., the documents that were served, and the first and last name of the person who served the documents. A Proof of Service is usually signed under penalty of perjury, so make sure what you fill in on your Proof of Service is truthful and in line with what actually took place. Hope this answers some of the general questions in an easy to read manner. If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to post on my blog or email me!

TAKE GOOD NOTES!!!

In this profession, it is not uncommon for a server to get hauled into court on a disputed serve. In my case it was a couple trying to get out of an Order of Examination. My client called me up and asked if I might be able to come with her to court because the Defendant's were disputing service. Unfortunately, the call came about one day before court and I was already locked into a job the morning court would be taking place. I told her I'd call her back so I could check my notes. The notes a process server takes during service, normally include the basics...date served, time served, address where it was served if different from the provided address, and a description of who was served. The job in question had taken place about 3 months ago and was just now being disputed, so if you're serving a lot of papers, it can be quite challenging to remember the exact details of a service that happened months back. That's why I take good notes!! After pulling my office copy and reviewing my notes, the serve came right back to me. I had very detailed descriptions of both parties served, the description of their house, and their entryway set up. I had vehicle descriptions and license plate numbers. I called my client back and told her that although I wouldn't be able to stand with her in court, I could give her a very detailed declaration of the service. We agreed that I would put together a declaration for the Judge to review if need be. I prepped my declaration, delivered it to my client, and waited to hear back from her about how court went the following day. Well, court went good! My very happy client called later in the afternoon to say that she was able to spot the Defendant's without even ever seeing them, just based on the descriptions provided in my declaration. She was confident in court and the judge didn't even need to see the declaration. She was able to ask all the questions she needed to about assets and didn't have to worry about her Judgment being thrown out. My advice to all those process servers out there, is to take good notes!! You never know when they'll come in handy! Less is never more in this profession. Take a detailed note down during service and you can always refer back to it months down the road if anything ever comes up.

RISING FUEL COSTS

Oh how I dread pulling into the gas station these days!! About 2 hours ago I fueled up for a trip to Lebec, CA and it cost me close to $40.00!! Being a process server means a lot of driving, and paying over $3.50 a gallon is upsetting. It's not uncommon for me to drive 300-500 miles in one day and having to fill up daily can get very expensive, very fast!! I try to combat the rising fuel costs by routing my stops as closely as possible, and keep my fingers crossed that I can knock out the majority of the serves on the first try. Getting a high volume of serves is key in this profession. With a stack of work to hit North, East, South, or West, you can justify these crazy high gas prices. When you're able to bill out upwards of $1,000.00 for a days worth of serving with that tank of gas it isn't so bad....that'll be a day I'm smiling. If you're just starting out, look for a client or clients who may only be looking for a server to handle one certain part of town, possibly a landlord with multiple complexes throughout town that require three day notices or Unlawful Detainer action. This will keep you in town and your mileage down until you are to the point where you have a little volume to justify your travel to farther locations. On a totally different note, keeping a detailed mileage log as a process server is very important as you can write off any business related miles that you travel. I'm very anal when it comes to my mileage log as it is VERY IMPORTANT if ever audited by the IRS, and so I encourage you to be also. Also, be sure to save your gas receipts (I scan mine into my computer at the end of every month to stay organized). Another way to combat fuel costs in this profession, is to cut back on any unnecessary spending. If you are marketing your business, spend some time researching which strategies are producing the most work for you, and cut the ones that aren't. If you are a new business, advertising is key, so don't cut out too much!! New work and new clients mean more volume, and more volume helps fight those rising fuel costs!!

HOW TO BECOME A LICENSED PROCESS SERVER IN KERN COUNTY

Interested in becoming a licensed process server? First of all, let me say that if you are willing to work hard, this can be a VERY lucrative profession. It isn't rare for a process server working full time to make upwards of $65, 000.00!! Sounds great...right? I won't lie it's not a cake walk by any standard, you will work hard. The life of a process server can be rough at times. A lot of time is spent in the car...at least you can listen to all the talk radio and music your little ears can stand...and sure it's true, there are rude people out there, but in my own personal experience, most people are pretty dang friendly. I'm a firm believer in the saying "treat people how you want to be treated". The first step in becoming a licensed process server is to pick up a Individual Process Server packet from the Kern County Clerk's Office http://www.co.kern.ca.us/  (or your own local county building). This packet usually includes an application form, a "Request for Live Scan Service", and a copy of the Business and Professions Code, section 22350-22360. The application form is self explanatory, it is basic information, name, address, etc...The "Request for Live Scan Service" is a form that is filled out and taken to any local business that offers fingerprinting (background search level: Dept of Justice and FBI). In my case I took mine to the local UPS store, the cost will run you around $70-$80.00 (tax deductible). After the scan is done, you're on to the next step..passport photos. In Kern County, they require three small picture IDs. I got mine done at Costco and it only cost me $10.00...NICE!! Next you will need to obtain a two (2) year, $2000.00 process server bond in favor of Kern County (you don't pay $2000.00, this will cost you around $85-$100 for a two year term). Most insurance companies will be able to help you get this ball rolling and the process usually only takes a day. Checklist: Complete individual application, fill out and get fingerprinted through Sheriff or UPS store, etc, take three passport photos, get bonded. ALMOST DONE! Now you're ready to go back to the Kern County Clerk's Office. Get all your stuff together and organized to make it easy on the clerk who helps you out. The Kern County Clerk's Office charges $117.00, payable to the Kern County Clerk for a $100 registration fee, a $10 ID badge, and a $7 file stamp bond. There will also be a $9 bond recording fee and $3 for any additional pages you record payable to the Kern County Recorder (or your own County Recorder's office). Once this is done, you will have a temporary process server badge and can begin advertising yourself as a bona fide process server to attorney's or process serving outfits looking for licensed process servers. In about one week, you will receive your permanent process server ID. I chose to laminate mine and keep it in my wallet at all times. Occasionally you will need to show it to gate guards or anyone who requests proof of ID. I STRONGLY SUGGEST taking any available courses you can find to learn as much as you can about being a process server and the codes associates with your profession. CALSPro is California's association for legal service professionals. The website address is www.calspro.com. Through their site, you can search their calendar of events that offer courses to become a CERTIFIED PROCESS SERVER. This means you know your stuff!! Not to mention your employers will have more faith knowing their documents are being handled by someone professional and knowledgeable. GOOD LUCK!