Can Legal Documents Be Put in a Mailbox?

“Can’t I just leave it in their mailbox?”

It’s a question we get all the time. It makes sense…that’s where people receive important documents and notices, so why not also use it to deliver court process?

Well, the reality is that there is absolutely no circumstance where it’s okay to put the legal process in an intended recipient’s mailbox. In Florida, it is preferred for process to be delivered by hand, in person. Even when it cannot be delivered by hand, it is still not okay for it to just be placed in someone’s mailbox…there are procedures that must be followed to serve a person when they cannot be found in person.

Don’t Touch the Mailbox!

First, messing with someone else’s mailbox could get you accused of a crime. While just touching the mailbox isn’t necessarily illegal, the recipient could claim that you removed mail from it while placing the process inside, which is illegal. In fact, it’s a federal offense that could lead to jail time and financial compensation.

Due Process Not Met

Second, just placing process in a mailbox doesn’t meet the requirement for due process. According to the U.S. Constitution, people have the right to due process of law, which basically just means fair treatment by the court system. Part of that fair treatment is notifying people of mandatory court appearances with enough time for them to adequately prepare their defense or testimony. Since a process server cannot verify that the intended recipient received the process by just placing it in their mailbox, the requirement of due process is not met, and the service is not valid.

Alternative Service

So what happens in a case where the process server has searched high and low for a defendant or witness to no avail? There are options to serve elusive process recipients, but they do not involve just dumping the process in their mailbox. The process server may request service by substitution or publication in cases where they can’t locate the process recipient. In both cases, the process must be officially mailed to the recipient’s last known address, in addition to other requirements. But this mailing must be done via the postal service using a verifiable shipment method, such as Certified Mail. This way, the court can verify that the intended process recipient, or their agent, was the person that actually picked up the process.

Process Servers in Tallahassee

If you need court process served in the greater Tallahassee area, Accurate Serve® can help. Our servers are certified to work in Florida’s 2nd Judicial Circuit, which covers Leon, Gadsden, Jefferson, Liberty, Wakulla, and Franklin counties. Just give us a call at (850) 519-5494 or send us a work request online to get started today.