Legal Question in Family Law in Washington

Re: Serving Papers

I don't know whether there is a way to prove that he has a set of the documents. What evidence do you have? There are a series of questions I would want answered, they start with: Is this the original service? If it is then you are going to have to establish jurisdiction and the usual way is by service. There is a way around personal service if you server has attempted three times (on three different days at three different times) you can petition for service by mail or publication. If you have effected the service of the summons and petition, but now you are seeking to do a motion, if he has appeared you can serve him by mail at the address he listed on his notice of appearance. The what ifs go on from here, and I am not inclined to try to guess all of them.

Re: Serving Papers

Even if you know he has obtained a set of papers, even if you have a witness who saw him reading the papers, that is not good enough if the papers you were having served are original process (usually a summons and complaint or petition). Short of having him personally served by a third party, the only other way to get by this requirement is to have him acknowledge in writing that he has been served or if he files a response or answer, then you do not have to worry about service.

If we're talking about a motion, then all you need to do is serve by mail and make sure that you file proof of service with the Court, so that if he does not appear at the hearing, there is something on file to prove you served him. If you serve in the mail by certified mail with return receipt, that's a bonus and makes things air tight for mail service.