A How to Serve Article from PST

12-07-2020
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A serve always has the chance of going wrong. While there is no “magic bullet” to ensure your serves go as smoothly as possible, exhibiting professionalism during a serve often helps and never hurts. There are many facets to professionalism when it comes to serving process. In this latest article we will discuss each aspect and why it’s important.

What is Professionalism?    

Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines Professionalism as “the conduct, aims, or qualities that characterize or mark a profession or a professional person” and it defines a profession as “a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive preparation”.

Another way to put it is that professionalism includes a variety of personal qualities and behaviors that demonstrate commitment to effective performance.

Characteristics of a Professional

There are several characteristics that encompass professionalism, no matter your line of business.

  • Professional Appearance – This is the first thing others will notice about you. Wearing apparel that might be comfortable but too casual (e.g., tank top, soiled or ripped shorts, flip flops) will not make a good first impression. In general, wear business casual dress, to show you are serious about your profession and your appearance. Practice good hygiene and grooming to make a good first impression. When required to appear in court, dress accordingly –  a coat and tie for gentleman and a dress or suit for ladies. There will be certain climates and serving situations where you will need to dress for your environment – in those situations it’s still important to try to do your best to be presentable.
  • How You Handle Yourself – The way you speak and treat others will quickly identify you as a professional and can be used to avoid and defuse tense situations. Be well-spoken and polite to everyone, including your clients, co-workers, and those you serve. Maintain your composure even when facing a hostile servee or situation. If the person is hostile, do not mirror their behavior – instead, work to diffuse the situation. Each of us never knows what the other person is going through, so be empathic and quickly serve your documents and leave. If you show up on their doorstep with an attitude you can all but be guaranteed to be met with a hostile person. We are human and people can push our buttons and get the best of us, but a professional will always strive to not respond in kind. You are the “disinterested” third party serving a legal document. Your mission is to serve the document, receive your payment, and move on to the next job. It’s not necessary to be rude to others and lessen your professionalism.
  • Communication – Be a good communicator. This profession requires you to clearly and simply identify why you are there and the details of the papers you are serving. The better you can do this, the more at ease both you and the person you are serving will be. You’ll also need to communicate status to your Client and ask for further direction. The better you are at providing clear updates and asking specific guidance questions, the more comfortable your Client will be dealing with you. If you are not natural at it, learn more about effective communication and practice some standard wording. TedTV has many videos on a variety of business topics, including communication.
  • Excellence and Good Service – Always strive to do your best and provide service in a timely manner and provide quick and accurate proofs of service to your Client. If you fail to give excellent customer service it will be very difficult to stay in business. Clients talk amongst themselves. Make sure the discussions about you and your business are positive.
  • Education – Stay current by improving your skills and staying current in your field. Be an active learner searching for new and better ways to do things. Become an expert in your field! While some states may have minimal or no requirements for education, it’s important to educate yourself regarding the rules and statutes regarding serving legal documents in your state. If you routinely serve process from other states, you will want to make sure you review their rules and statutes. Your state process server association or the National Association of Professional Process Servers are good resources for information.
  • Confidence and Commitment – Express confidence in your ability to handle whatever work comes your way. However, remain teachable and humble – a professional will express confidence, but not attitude, and will always be learning from both the serves that go right and those that go wrong.
  • Compliance and Licensing – Ensure you maintain your insurance and licenses in current compliance and renew them prior to the expiration to make sure you do not have any drops in coverage. In some states serving process without a license is a third-degree felony.
  • Honesty and Integrity – Maintain a high level of integrity. Do not jeopardize your license over a service. Do not perform a service you know is wrong. Serving correctly and providing an accurate proof of service is vital. Do not make rash decisions. Stop and think through a request from a client that does not sound ethical. Research it thoroughly. Verify the information provided. It may appear correct on the surface, but upon review you discover it is not. As an example, a client might insist the party lives at an address and to “serve it anyway – even though you have conducted your research and confirmed the person does not live there and you have a possible address where they may be. Should you serve it? A professional would not. You can attempt the address, but if you know the person does not live there you should not serve that process. You are responsible for your proof of service. If you are in doubt, consider the following questions: Is it legal? Does the service comply with state laws regarding service? Does it violate my own values or beliefs? Cause harm to others? Think through how your action will affect others and ponder the result.
  • Impartiality – Do not become involved in the individual’s drama or ‘vendetta’ against a serve. Always remain disinterested in the process you are serving. Don’t let your personal reactions or feelings about a person you are interacting with impact how you complete the serve.
  • Accountability – Follow through on all assignments as you have agreed to. If you advised your Client you will go to an address 5 times, do not go only 3 times and tell them you will not make any additional attempts, unless you have a legitimate reason or fear bodily harm. Communicate with your client to discuss the situation. If a service or attempt does not go as planned (e.g.,d; If you quoted the Client for Rush service and then failed to attempt it on a Rush basis) own up to your mistake. Work to resolve the issue and offer a credit to the Client. It would be much better to be accountable, lose money on the serve, but not lose the Client. Your final impression with your Client will be that even though the service went poorly, you were professional, owned up to it, and resolved it.

Why is Professionalism Important?

Professionalism is a display of your attitude and behavior that is all encompassing – it speaks to how you handle your clients, how you interact with those you serve, and others in the court and legal system. It will affect how successful you are in serving process and maintaining your business. Specific reasons you should consider professionalism in how you conduct your serves includes:

  • Duty – It is the duty of the professional process server to conduct themselves in a professional manner, as a representative of our legal system.
  • Pride – You are playing a vital role in the concept of due process – take pride in your work and your role. 
  • Respect – People respect others who take pride in their work and show respect for them. Garner respect from your Clients and the people you are serving by being professional and following a respectful way of speaking to each other.
  • Business Reputation – Who could not use more business? A company or process server known for its positive reputation and professionalism is one which will stand the test of time. When it comes time for an individual to select a provider for service those with the highest positive feedback are more likely to receive the job.

Where to Go for More Information

The role of the process server in the legal community is important. Attorneys, other process servers, and pro se clients expect service to be performed professionally and accurately, followed by a prompt proof of service. It is important for process servers to demonstrate to clients that they take their role seriously.

If you are interested in more thoughts on professionalism in process serving, NAPPS and some state associations have documented codes of ethics.

In addition, NAPPS, FAPPS, and CALSPro have published documents that outline best practices in serving papers.

Even if you aren’t a member, these documents are good resources for additional thoughts on how to serve professionally.