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Motion to Validate Service: a Request for Court Order to Confirm Acceptance of Document Service
Question: How can a Motion to Validate Service help my Small Claims case?
Answer: A Motion to Validate Service ensures that your case can proceed efficiently, even if documents were served improperly. Vescio Legal Services can assist in demonstrating valid attempts to serve documents and provide the necessary evidence for a successful motion. This helps avoid unnecessary delays and keeps your legal matters on track.
A Document Served Improperly May Be Deemed Served
The Rules of the Small Claims Court, O. Reg. 258/98 lack a procedure for when the intended recipient receives a document through a method that falls outside of the prescribed Rules; thus, in such a circumstance, it becomes necessary to refer to the Rules of Civil Procedure, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, which include a procedure for the validation of service via a Motion to Validate Service. The relevant sections in the Rules of the Small Claims Court and the Rules of Civil Procedure are:
Matters Not Covered in Rules
1.03 (2) If these rules do not cover a matter adequately, the court may give directions and make any order that is just, and the practice shall be decided by analogy to these rules, by reference to the Courts of Justice Act and the Act governing the action and, if the court considers it appropriate, by reference to the Rules of Civil Procedure.
Validating Service
16.08 Where a document has been served in a manner other than one authorized by these rules or an order, the court may make an order validating the service where the court is satisfied that,
(a) the document came to the notice of the person to be served; or
(b) the document was served in such a manner that it would have come to the notice of the person to be served, except for the person’s own attempts to evade service.
Conclusion
Filing a Motion to validate service can help to ensure that a case proceeds without unnecessary delays. In a Motion to validate service, it is beneficial to show that there were efforts to serve documents correctly and to provide any available evidence to support the request for validation.