BATON ROUGE PROCESS SERVERS
AREAS SERVED
Baton Rouge, Baker, Central City, Covington, Denham Springs, Destrehan, Gardere, Gonzales, Merrydale, Shenandoah, Zachary, Prairieville, Brownfields, Donaldsonville, Oak Hills Place, Old Jefferson Plaquemine, Port Allen, St. Gabriel, Village St. George, Walker, Addis, Brusly, Clinton, Inniswold, Jackson, Kenner, Killian, LaPlace, Livingston, Livonia, Luling, Mandeville, Maringouin, Metaire, Monticello, New Roads, Ponchatoula, St. Francisville, Slaughter, Sorrento, Westminster, White Castle, Albany, Fordoche, French Settlement, Greensburg, Grosse Tête, Montpelier, Morganza, Norwood, Port Vincent, Rosedale, Springfield, Wilson
What Our Clients Are Saying
As Louisiana’s top legal support services company for nearly two decades, area attorneys, courts, and pro-se litigants know that they can always rely on us. We pride ourselves on our courteous, accurate, discreet, and quick service that our customers have come to rely on. As such, we have come to serve a larger area and have grown to provide a more comprehensive array of services under the legal support umbrella. That is why you should choose us not only as your everyday, dependable process server, but also as your go-to deliverer of a plethora of legal services to strengthen your case while easing your workload.
Our Services
Process Service
Witness Locating
We are able to find experts in order to testify on your behalf for your court case. Stengthen your case by finding professionals with the expertise in the field.
Court Filing
Submittal of complete and accurate paperwork into the court system by the appropriate deadline so that your case can continue without delay.
Criminal & Civil Background Checks
Thorough, legal, and detailed background checks for criminal and civil needs. We are available to provide you with the information that you need for your case or for reviewing potential employees, renters, or to search any criminal behavior.
Courthouse Research
Collecting information for numerous local courthouses to delve into their public records for the information, rulings, or evidence that your case requires. Save time and stress by hiring us to review and organize public records for you.
Legal Courier Service
Legal couriers pick up and deliver documents and packages that are often time sensitive. They often deliver items a law firm is unwilling to entrust to other means of delivery, such as highly sensitive evidence or confidential case information.
Louisiana Certified Process Server
Not unlike a county or parish sheriff, a process server is able to make service of process in the state of Louisiana. As a matter of fact, Article 23 of the Louisiana Code states, in part, that “When the sheriff has not made service within ten days after receipt of the process or when a return has been made certifying that the sheriff has been unable to make service, whichever is earlier, on motion of a party the court shall appoint a person over the age of majority, not a party and residing within the state whom the court deems qualified to perform the duties required, to make service of process in the same manner as is required of sheriffs. Service of process made in this manner shall be proved like any other fact in the case. Any person who is a Louisiana licensed private investigator shall be presumed qualified to perform the duties required to make service.”
As an established process server and legal support services company, Lafayette Process Servers is proudly the most patronized business of its kind, attracting Louisiana customers from as far away as Hammond, New Orleans, Lake Charles, Houma, Gonzales, and Morgan City. We also gladly serve the local communities of Lafayette and Baton Rouge. We represent all the beautiful and diverse areas of the great state of Louisiana and it is our pleasure to serve you. Why should you risk leaving your documents in the hands of an upstart when you can trust an established Louisiana company?
Lafayette Process Servers began with, Scott Frank, the man who spent many years building his local reputation as Louisiana’s most trustworthy and dependable process server. As a pillar of our community for nearly twenty years, adjacent areas around the Gulf Coast and western Mississippi took notice, and chose Lafayette Process Servers over their comparable local companies that have been deemed average at best and inadequate at worst.
As you may already be aware of, hiring an experienced process server is imperative as the first step in a successful lawsuit. After all, a matter can be easily dismissed based just on improper service alone. As such, clever attorneys and pro-se litigants hire Lafayette Process Servers because they know the job will be done correctly, quickly, and within the laws of the state of Louisiana.
Types of Process Service
Legal documents, such as summonses, complaints, and subpoenas, must be served on an individual in order for legal proceedings to commence. That said, in certain conditions, the court will allow what is referred to as “substituted service.” This simply means that service will be made on a reasonable representative that was found at the defendant’s home or workplace. However, if one were to sue a business, he or she would have to serve its agent.
Remember, there are so many laws and procedures in place that dictate what is considered proper service. As a matter of fact, different legal matters may allow exceptions, where others may not. Also, what is proper in another state, parish, or city may not apply to area where your court is located.
But, don’t fret! There is no need to worry about the process service laws in Louisiana and in each of its parishes. You could, instead, hire a process server with that innate knowledge to deliver your paperwork. Lafayette Process Servers is a company you can trust to properly serve your paperwork within the confines of local rules.
Body Cameras and Process Service
As with nearly all professions in the 21st century, process-serving technology has certainly grown and changed. As a modern company, Lafayette Process Servers has adopted the use of new equipment in an effort to keep up with the competition and to serve our customers better. That is why you can be assured that every one of our process servers is equipped with a body camera while serving your documents.
Now, it is stated by law that we file a signed affidavit proving service, but our time-stamped video footage definitely presents to the court, beyond all doubt, that the defendant or witness was adequately served.
This proves once again that Lafayette Process Servers is the right company for the job because it provides indisputable service.
Process Service In Louisiana
- Matrimonial Actions
- Landlord/Tenant Disputes
- Accidents/Personal Injury
- Medical Malpractice
- Insurance Disputes
- Business Disputes/Breach of Contract
- Wills and Intestacy
- Bankruptcy
- Mortgage Researcher
- Title Abstractor Researcher
- Process Agent BOC-3
- Corporation Service Company in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- CT Corporation System in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Louisiana Attorney General in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Louisiana Secretary of State in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- National Registered Agents, Inc. in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Louisiana Registered Agent LLC in Lafayette, Louisiana
- Conveyance
Why is Proper Service So Important?
So, we already stated that a case may be dismissed if a defendant can prove improper service. However, why is the service of the paperwork so critical that it can cause a judge to throw out a legal matter altogether?
Well, to understand its levity, you need to grasp preliminary civil law. The summonses and complaints are served on the defendant, or the one being sued, by the plaintiff, the one doing the suing. The defendant is given a time period in which to answer the complaint and file it with the court.
However, if he or she does not file a timely answer, he or she may be subject to a default judgment, meaning the plaintiff automatically wins everything that he or she has requested since the defendant did not appear in court.
This is why it is crucial to provide evidence that the defendant was served to prove he or she was aware of the proceedings. If he or she could not be served, there still must be proof filed with the court that every legal requirement has been made to alert the defendant of the pending suit.
Process servers are actually on the proverbial “front lines” of the fundamental rights of due process. After all, this starts with letting a civil defendant know that a lawsuit has been filed against him or her.
The process server is necessary for due process to be considered fair. Courts have held that notification via mail does not protect one’s rights since mail gets misplaced all the time. Plus, new occupants of a home could receive the letter and never return it to the post office and inform them that the defendant had moved away. Therefore, the only way to ensure the defendant’s knowledge of a court action is through personal service.
After all, it would be unconstitutional to deprive of person of his or her property due to a lawsuit that he or she was unaware of.
Process servers play a very important role, protecting the fundamental rights of due process in notifying a defendant that an action is being served against him. Courts have held that notifying a defendant by mail does not adequately protect their rights as the letter could get lost in the mail, or be opened by new occupants at a dwelling who didn’t inform the post office that the defendant had moved. It would be an unconstitutional violation of a person’s due process rights to take a person’s property due to a lawsuit that he didn’t even know about.
How Due Process Developed Throughout History
So, what is this “due process” that we speak of? It is a fundamental right that we cherish as citizens of the United States of America and the state of Louisiana. And, while it may seem that months or years tick by while we wait for justice in a given legal matter, this is because crossing every “t” and dotting every “i” means that the system will work best for all parties in the end. That is not to say that the system is perfect -it’s not – but it works most of the time.
Due process and civil procedure have its roots in the ancient cultures of Greece, China, and the Roman Empire. However, it was the English Magna Carta that proved to be the most modern inspiration for our current system.
1215 – The Magna Carta
Formed in the 13th century, and signed by King John of England, The Magna Carta is the initial agreement between citizens and the government that guarantees many if the rights that many British folks take for granted today.
After decades of excess taxation created what may have become a bloody rebellion, the document was written to quell the masses.
While no one really knows who actually penned The Magna Carta, it is likely to be the prominent signer Steven Langton, the Archbishop of Langton.
In English, the document known as “The Great Charter” outlined our modern take on due process and the rights of the individual. The first step in due process in court is giving proper notice to a defendant so he or she is aware that a lawsuit has been filed against him or her. He or she would need enough time to defend his or her self. That is why trusted representatives from the government would serve process in this era and swear in court that notification was made.
1970 – Reasonable Doubt Standard
While criminal laws are usually written by individual state congresses, there are a few overarching guidelines from the federal government provided by the Supreme Court. We include this here as it relates to due process.
In 1970, the Supreme Court ruled that the due process clause of the Constitution should require the highest standard of proof before the court in order to punish one for a criminal offense. This ruling could not be ignored or overturned by the states.
This standard of proof came to be known as “beyond a reasonable doubt,” and this must be determined by a jury of one’s peers. They must assess whether the defendant is guilty of each element of each crime that he or she is accused of and that guilt must meet the new standard.
While due process requirements resulted in fewer convictions, it also resulted in fewer innocent persons becoming incarcerated or sentenced to death.
1787 – The Constitution of the United States of America
Did you know that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution states: All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
This is important because, though the particular process isn’t specified, it can definitely be applied to the concept of due process. Laws have been created by congresses throughout the centuries that subscribe to this theory and various presidents have approved them. The courts have interpreted such laws broadly to protect all citizens.
Whereas, the 6th Amendment to the Constitution states, “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right…to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation…”
While we do not serve criminal defendants, we mention this here to make a point. Due process rights in criminal cases are even stricter than civil matters because one may lose his or her freedom upon the conclusion of a legal proceeding.
1982 – Combatting Threats to Due Process
A serious threat to the due process of litigants was made in 1982 when federal legislation was considered that would permit civil summonses and complaints to be distributed by certified mail rather than served.
A group of process servers from as many as eleven different states responded by forming a convention in Las Vegas in order to fight the bill and prevent it from becoming a federal law. Thankfully, due to their vehement opposition, the bill was stricken down.
This hearty group later became the present-day National Association of Professional Process Servers, or NAPPS.
Looking to the Future of Process Service
As we stated before, we utilize technological benefits in the course of our work. ServeManager and other process-serving software improves our workflow, but we are adamant that technology never supersedes one’s due process rights.
As such, you can be sure that we will never serve a defendant by fax or mail, as this does not protect his or her rights. It is also not considered proper service in Louisiana, and will never replace valid, in-person process serving.
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(225) 243-9669
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