The County Court Rules 1981

PART I GENERALLY

General mode of service

1.—(1) Where by virtue of these rules any document is required to be served on any person and no other mode of service is prescribed by any Act or rule, the document may be served—

(a) if the person to be served is acting in person, by delivering it to him personally or by delivering it at, or sending it by first-class post to, his address for service or, if he has no address for service—

(i) by delivering the document at his residence or by sending it by first-class post to his last known residence, or

(ii) in the case of a proprietor of a business, by delivering the document at his place of business or sending it by first-class post to his last known place of business;

(b) if the person to be served is acting by a solicitor, by delivering the document at, or sending it by first-class post to, the solicitor's address for service.

(2) In this Order “first-class post” means first-class post which has been pre-paid or in respect of which prepayment is not required.

Personal service

2.  Where any document is required by an Act or rule to be served personally—

(a) service shall be effected by leaving the document with the person to be served;

(b) the document may be served by—

(i) a bailiff of the court or, if the person to be served attends at the office of the court, any other officer of the court; or

(ii) a party to the proceedings or some person acting as his agent; or

(iii) the solicitor of a party or a solicitor acting as an agent for such solicitor or some person employed by either solicitor to serve the document;

but service shall not be effected by any person under the age of 16 years.

Days on which no service permitted

3.  Without prejudice to Order 40, rule 5(5), no process shall be served or executed within England or Wales on a Sunday, Good Friday or Christmas Day except, in the case of urgency, with the leave of the court.

Service beyond boundary of district

4.—(1) Any process to be served or executed by the bailiff of any court may be served or executed within a distance of not more than 500 yards beyond the boundary of the district of that court.

(2) Without prejudice to paragraph (1), any process to be served or executed by bailiff may, if the judge or registrar of the court from which it issues so directs be served or executed within the district of any other court by the bailiff of the court from which the process issues.

Violence or threats

5.  Where a bailiff is prevented by the violence or threats of the person to be served, or any other person acting in concert with him, from serving a document in manner prescribed by this Order, it shall be sufficient service to leave the document as near as practicable to the person to be served.

Proof of service or non-service

6.—(1) The person effecting service of any document shall—

(a) if he is an officer of the court, make, sign and file a certificate showing the date, place and mode of service and any conduct money paid or tendered to the person served; and

(b) if he is not an officer of the court, file an affidavit of service.

(2) A bailiff who has failed to effect service of any document to be served by bailiff shall make, sign and file a certificate of non-service showing the reason why service has not been effected, and the proper officer of the bailiff's court shall send notice of non-service to the person at whose instance the document was issued.

Service in foreign district

7.—(1) Where any document is to be served in the district of a foreign court by a bailiff of that court, the proper officer shall send the document and all necessary copies to the foreign court.

(2) On the filing of a certificate of service or non-service of a document under rule 6 the proper officer of the foreign court shall forward the certificate to the home court, together with any copies of the document in his possession.

Substituted service

8.—(1) If it appears to the court that it is impracticable for any reason to serve a document in any manner prescribed by these rules for the service of that document, the court may, upon an affidavit showing grounds, make an order (in this rule called “an order for substituted service”) giving leave for such steps to be taken as the court directs to bring the document to the notice of the person to be served.

(2) Where a document is to be served by bailiff, the proper officer of the bailiff's court shall, if so requested, take such steps as may be necessary to provide evidence on which an order for substituted service may be made.