Service Documents in Sealed Envelopes
1 June 2011

To achieve some uniformity with the Court of Session Rules service copy documents must now be placed in a sealed envelope where service is not effected personally on a defender. In other words where service is effected in the hands of a resident or deposited within the premises the service copy will need to be in a sealed envelope. This will mean where service is effected personally on one spouse, the service copy for the other spouse will be in a sealed envelope.

The envelope will have the following notice detailed upon it:

“This envelope contains a citation to or intimation from (insert name of sheriff court)”

That works well for service documents. Unfortunately the rule also applies to the service of charges and it may inadvertently result in some charges being returned to the Sheriff Court rather than to the officer or instructing agent.

The rules came into force on 4 April 2011 in terms of the Act of Sederunt (Sheriff Court Rules) (Miscellaneous Amendments) 2011.