How do I serve the other party with notice of my small claims court case?

In Maryland, there are a few ways to serve notice of a small claims court case. The first is by personal service, which requires that the other party directly receive a summons and complaint from the court clerk in person. The second way to serve notice is called substituted service, which requires the court clerk to send the documents to a responsible adult associated with the other party, typically a friend or family member. The last way is called constructive service, which allows the court clerk to post the documents on the courthouse bulletin board and mail them to the other party’s last known address. When using personal or substituted service, the court clerk must provide a return of service with a signed complaint. The return of service must be filed with the court in order for the small claims court case to proceed. When using constructive service, the court clerk must provide an affidavit of service, which must also be filed with the court. It is also important to note that in Maryland, digital or online service of the documents is not accepted. All summons and complaints must be served in one of the three ways described above.

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