Does the Convention on the Service Abroad of judicial & extrajudicial documents apply to family law?
According to a case from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Satchidanthan v. Sivanesan, if the person being served resides in a jurisdiction that is a State party to the Convention, then service may well have to conform to the requirements of the Convention of the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters.
It ought to be noted that:
- The Convention does not apply where the address of the person being served is not known.
- According to the Convention, each contracting state must designate a central authority which will undertake to receive requests for service that originate from other contracting states.
- Requests for service must conform to a model that is provided for in (i.e. annexed to) the Convention itself.
The following are examples of contracting States to this Convention: Albania, Argentina, Australia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, and Romania. For a complete list as well as a complete guide to country's reservations, declarations and notifications, visit the following website.
Click on this link for more information on this Convention.
To learn more about practical operation documents, click here.
This Convention is becoming increasingly more significant, as based on the decision in Satchidanthan v. Sivanesan, it appears that courts may, in fact, be willing to invalidate service that does not conform to these rules.
It remains to be seen as to whether the Family Law Rules actually permit service on a contracting state that is not in accordance with the Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters.
Contact the family lawyers at Krol & Krol at 905.707.3370 for a free initial telephone consultation on your family law proceedings.
