The Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters

The Hague Convention on international process service is a mechanism to allows for the service of papers issued from the court in one county on the Recipient in another.

The Convention only applies to countries that adhere to the same.

For those countries it facilitates a method of service that is more difficult to challenge in the court of origin as it equates to 'good service'.

The procedure is logical in theory but will seldom yield results in practice.

The instructing Lawyer will send the completed Hague paperwork and court documentation to the relevant Court or High Court situated in the relevant country, they oversee service through the system and send the Hague certificate of service back to the client which should be a simple process

However, the procedure is far from efficient and the papers are normally not served.

Those involved in matters concerning the Service of Documents via the Hague Convention normally have to find alternative means of having papers served.

The realistic alternative

Put simply we can stop the ineffectiveness of international Process Serving:

• Papers will be served to timescale
   
• Papers will not come back with 'non-service' for no explained reason
   
• Progress reports are supplied
   
• Important court deadlines will not be missed
   
• Papers will be served correctly
   
• The correct papers will be served
   
• The procedure will not take months on end
   
• The procedure will be cost effective

The basic legal method proposed by the Hague Convention using Private Process Servers or Bailiffs

By the use of a “Alternative or decentralised”, (taken from the Hague Convention of 1965 deregulations, of Art. 10.)

This article offers the use of Local Bailiffs or International Private Process servers.
 

The basic legal method using the Hague Convention AND Private Process Servers or Bailiffs (only suitable for certain countries).

• Email European Process in advance with full Hague Request, Documents and funds.
   
• We will inform the Central Authority of the case and seek their approval to serve the same.
   
• We will collect documents and undertake service as required by applicable Procedure Rules
   
• The return (affidavit) of service is returned to the Central Authority.
   
• The Hague Certificate and related documentation is returned to us
   
• We will courier the documentation to you.