How do I properly serve divorce papers?

In Arizona, the party filing for divorce must properly serve the other party with the Summons and Complaint for Dissolution of Marriage. Proper service of process is essential to begin a divorce proceeding. The Summons and Complaint must be delivered or “served” to the other party by a person who is not involved in the case. This person is typically referred to as a process server. The process server must serve the papers in a manner allowed by the Arizona court rules, which is personal service. Personal service means delivering each document to the other party and providing an affidavit of service, which is a sworn statement providing the details of the service, to the court. Personal service can be done by the process server or by another adult, over the age of 18, who is not involved in the case. If the other party avoids being served, service by publication can be done. Service by publication involves printing a notice of the divorce action in a newspaper of general circulation, to inform the other party that divorce papers have been filed. In conclusion, the best way to serve divorce papers in Arizona is to hire a process server and have them serve the Summons and Complaint personally to the other party. If the other party is avoiding service, you can seek an order from the court to allow you to serve by publication.

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How do I properly serve divorce papers?

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