Understanding Drop Service
Hi, I’m Tulsa Dads.Law attorney Clint Hastings. I focus on fathers’ rights, and I practice law here in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Drop service is when a process server is having trouble serving your spouse with the actual paperwork. They ring the doorbell, and the person won’t come to the door—or you see them, and they immediately turn and run away. Maybe the server confronts them in a parking lot or someplace they frequent, and the person walks away.
Drop Service in Oklahoma
In Oklahoma, the statute says that any reasonable means to give that person the paperwork can count. And that includes what we call drop service, which is literally dropping the paperwork in front of the person who refuses to grab it. That can count.
The process server has to write up an affidavit stating how it occurred, and it has to be reasonably done in a fashion that the party knew it was dropped and maybe had a chance to grab the paperwork. If a process server throws it in the air and it blows across the park, that’s not going to be a reasonable means of serving the paperwork. And I have seen cases like that—different ways in which, let’s say, a car was driving off and a process server throws it at the car—that’s probably not going to count.
Next Steps in the Process
So, in the next few videos, I’m going to talk some more about service and different ways to get it done when your spouse is either hard to locate or impossible to locate.
Get a Consultation Today
To learn more about your options and get affordable legal advice, call Tulsa divorce attorney Clint Hastings at (918) 962-0900 for a consultation. Let us guide you through the process.
