I know that there are many questions about serving process here in Costa Rica. This blog is not intended to be legal advice nor is it a legal opinion. However, I think a review of the procedure for serving process in the States would shed light on the problems encountered here in Costa Rica serving process. In the United States we are accustomed to paying anywhere between $50 to $100 to have process served. In Costa Rica that cost is going to be a lot higher.
Anyone over the age of 18 can serve subpoenas, but a summons requires service by a deputy sheriff or other person authorized by law. Almost every state has similar laws regarding the service of process. Most mirror the Federal Rules.
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure is an example of the rules in the majority of the states. From reading the rules one can see there are very specific rules as to who can serve process. Although the rule provides for appointment of a person who has no interest in the case by the Court of Competent Jurisdiction, that does not apply in Costa Rica because the Courts in the United States have no jurisdiction here.
In order to have a person appointed here in Costa Rica, it is necessary for a Court here to have jurisdiction over the matter here and order that person to serve the papers received from the Court in the United States. The only way to accomplish this is through the conduit of Letters Rogatory. This process is both lengthy and expensive. Thus if the service needs to be accomplished in a relatively short period of time this is not an option.
Another potential problem with service of process outside the United States is the need for the service to withstand a motion to quash. From experience these motions are frequently granted when the person receiving the process can demonstrate to the Court that the service is defective. At times this can be overcome by the person who served the process appearing in Court and testifying how and under what circumstances the process was served. This combined with the attorney’s motion for exceptional circumstances at times will prevail. If the person serving the process is unavailable or cannot travel to the United States to testify then the motion to quash will probably be granted.
Another problem for process service in Costa Rica is the costs associated with carrying out the service. For starters, there are no numbered addresses here in Costa Rica, for example 1212 First Street, San Diego, California is pretty easy to find. Not so in Costa Rica, all addresses are by description (e.g turn right on the third dirt road past the Imperial sign, about one kilometers past the Mango tree, look for the house with the goat in front, and it is the blue house in back).
Given the fluidity of the population here many times the address that was given is not the current address and the roadway system is antiquated with most roads being two lanes and in ill repair. See video on Driving to Puerto Jimenez on the Osa Peninsula. Also during the raining season (June to November) roads closures are common due to washouts and landslides like Tropical Storm Tomas did in November, 2010.
For example, if service needs to be affected in Guanacaste (Northwest) Costa Rica, it can take up to 5-8 hours one way to reach your destination. Once there you must search and find the location based on the description of the address.
The United States Federal Courts in some jurisdictions are now permitting personal service via email. Although this has not been incorporated into the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, The Federal Courts are demonstrating their willingness to entertain the ideas of social media in many different ways. Recently, the Ninth District Federal Court in New York permitted Facebook during “voir dire” of an expert witness.
It is difficult to forecast if the individual State Courts will follow suit. If they do it will go a long way in paving the way for a more efficient and effective method of service on individuals outside the jurisdiction of the Court of Subject jurisdiction. Historically, individual states have followed or at least mirrored the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. It will be interesting to see what will happen if the Federal Courts permanently adopt a rule allowing service via the Internet.
Until the rule is adopted and universally applied to all federal Courts, the method will be restricted to the current rule which allows for the service on individuals to take place by personal service.
About the author of the article: Cody L. Gear and Associates has been providing private investigation and private detective services in Costa Rica for over 8 years. We are physically located in San Jose, Costa Rica, and are partnered with a Licensed Attorney. For more info please visit our website, private investigation in Costa Rica
Interesting article! Thank you