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Served or Service
It's a general principle of New Zealand’s legal system that anyone who is accused of something, or is legally obliged to do something, has the right to know what that obligation or accusation is and who it is that says so.
Generally, a notice, demand or summons of some sort must be received, describing the accusation or legal obligation. The actual act of giving such a notice is called 'serving;' and receiving any such notice is called 'being served.' Generally, notices must be delivered into the hands of the person being served, so that the person doing the serving can attest to the fact that the notice has been received by the person named in the notice. There are some exceptions.
An address for service is a place where certain legal documents can be delivered. It will usually be a person’s principle place of residence (PPOR). A person may have more than one address for service. E.g. the office of a person’s legal representative/lawyer. A Post Office box is not considered a valid address for service.
In some circumstances, such notices can be deemed to have been served if affixed to the door of a person’s PPOR.
Many such legal notices have a time specification in them. Usually requiring a person to do something within or by a set period from the "date of service." The effective date of the "date of service" may vary. If served upon a person or their legal representative, the count-down of days starts then. If posted through the mail, the count-down of days starts some days after the date of posting. Often particular laws have specific directions about 'service' requirements and how the days are counted before a Court or Tribunal will determine that the person has had enough time to do what the notice required them to do.
Most NZ Courts and Tribunals require 'proof of service,' before a decision is made against someone who is not present at any hearing, not has a legal representative present.
This information was complied using material originally provided by Lisa Dudson [1]
--Perry 22:22, 27 September 2007 (NZST)
