Serve by Certified Mail or Publication

Do I have to serve the other party? 

Yes: When you first start a new case in court, you must have a copy of your summons, petition (or complaint), and other papers you’re filing delivered to the person you’re filing the case against ("the other party"). We call this having the other party "served" or "service of process."

The other party has a legal right to receive a copy of the papers you file. The judge won’t make any decisions in your case until you can show proof that the other party got copies of your court papers.

In certain types of cases, if you can’t have the other party personally served, you have other options. If you’re filing a divorce, parentage, petition for parenting plan, or petition to change parenting plan, and you haven’t been able to have the other party personally served, you can file a motion asking for permission to serve the other party by mail or by publication in a newspaper. 

Do I always need court permission to serve by mail?

If you’ve already served the summons and petition on the other party, and you’re giving them more documents during the case, you generally don't need court permission to serve by mail. Follow our step-by-step instructions to serve papers after a case starts.

You also don't need advance permission from a judge to serve these specific papers by mail (with return receipt): 

• Petition to Modify Child Support Order, if you are changing a child Support Order signed by a Washington State Court
• Notice of Intent to Move with Children (Relocation)
• Objection about Moving with Children and Petition about Changing a Parenting/Custody Order (Relocation)

Why should I not try to serve by serve by mail or publication? 

Service by mail or publication is complicated and technical. Courts only allow it in special situations. It usually gives the court only limited authority (limited jurisdiction) over the other party. 

Examples: You may not be able to have property and debts divided, get a restraining order, get a child support order, or decide parentage.

There are other downsides to serving by mail or publication. A judge could later decide that the service was improper. If, for example, the judge doesn’t believe you tried hard enough to find the other party, the judge may cancel all your court orders, even years down the road.

Can I ask to serve by mail because the other party lives out of state and I can’t afford personal service? 

The law may let you serve the other party by mail if you have a very low income, but we don’t recommend you do this. 

• It will give the court only limited jurisdiction.
• There’s a chance your papers will be challenged, even years later, because you didn't have the other party personally served. 

Have the other party personally served in all cases where possible. Try asking the sheriff in the county where the other person lives to serve for you, or hire a professional “process server” (a professional who serves legal papers). 

When will a judge allow service by mail or publication? 

The judge may grant your motion to serve by mail or publication if you can show either of these:

• The other party deliberately hid from you, your server or servers or
• The other party moved, has no forwarding address, you don’t know where they work, truly have no idea where they are, and have no way to find out 

How do I prove I can't have someone personally served?

Before you can even file a motion to serve the other party by mail or publication, you must first make honest, reasonable efforts to try to find the other party for personal service. You can’t just assume the other party can’t be found.

Is service by mail or service by publication better? 

If you have any mailing address (even a close relative’s address) you could use, try first to get an order to serve by certified mail. You can ask to serve the other party by certified mail if personal service has been unsuccessful, and a certified letter is just as likely to notify the other party as publishing the Summons in a newspaper in the Legal Notices section.

Ask to serve by publication only as a last resort if you can’t get an order to serve by mail. Service by publication costs a lot. It may be less likely than service by mail to reach the other party.