The following questions and answers address the most common enquiries received from solicitors, legal professionals and members of the public about process serving, tracing, surveillance and investigative services in Northern Ireland. Priority Process operates from Belfast and covers all of Northern Ireland, Great Britain, the Republic of Ireland and Europe.
1. What is process serving?
Process serving is the formal delivery of legal documents — such as claim forms, court orders, injunctions, divorce petitions and statutory demands — to a named individual or legal entity, in a manner that satisfies the procedural requirements of the relevant court or jurisdiction. Proper service establishes that the recipient has been formally notified of the proceedings against them and is a prerequisite to the court’s ability to make binding orders. In Northern Ireland, process serving requirements are governed by the procedural rules applicable to the court in which proceedings have been commenced — including the County Court Rules (Northern Ireland) and the Rules of the Court of Judicature — and service must be effected in accordance with those rules to be valid.
2. What documents can be served?
Priority Process serves a wide range of civil and legal documents, including but not limited to: claim forms and particulars of claim, statutory demands (personal and corporate), divorce and family proceedings documents, witness summonses, injunctions and court orders, bankruptcy and winding-up petitions, notices to quit and possession proceedings documents, and contractual notices. We also serve documents in connection with international proceedings under the Hague Service Convention. If you have a specific document type that does not appear on this list, please contact us to confirm whether we can assist.
3. What is an affidavit of service?
An affidavit of service — also referred to as a certificate of service or process server’s affidavit — is a sworn or affirmed statement produced by the process server confirming that service has been effected. It records the identity of the person who served the documents, the date, time and location of service, the manner in which service was effected, and a description of the person served where personal service was achieved. The affidavit is a formal legal document, sworn before a solicitor or commissioner for oaths, and it may be filed with the court as evidence that service has been properly carried out. Priority Process provides an affidavit of service as standard on every instruction.
4. How long does process serving take?
In the greater Belfast area and other areas where we maintain regular coverage, service is typically attempted within 24 to 48 hours of receiving instructions and the documents to be served. Where a subject is available at the address provided, service is often effected on the first or second attempt. Where multiple attempts are required — for example, because a subject is elusive or the initial address is incorrect — timescales will extend accordingly, and we will keep the instructing solicitor informed of progress at each stage. For urgent matters, we offer an express service; please contact us to discuss availability and timescales before instructing.
5. What happens if a person refuses to accept documents?
Refusal to accept process documents does not, in itself, prevent valid service from being effected. Under the rules applicable in Northern Ireland — as in other UK jurisdictions — personal service is generally achieved by bringing the document to the attention of the recipient and making clear what the document is. If a person refuses to take the document, the process server may place it in the presence of the subject and inform them of its nature. The document does not need to be physically taken by the recipient for service to be valid in these circumstances. Priority Process documents all attempts and any refusal in the affidavit of service, ensuring a clear record for the instructing solicitor and the court.
6. Can documents be served on a business?
Yes. Documents can be served on a company or other legal entity, and the rules for doing so differ from those applicable to individual service. For a registered company, service is generally effected at the company’s registered office as recorded at Companies House — or, in the case of a Northern Ireland-incorporated company, at the address registered with Companies House for NI companies. In practice, this may mean serving at the company’s trading address or, in some circumstances, on a director, company secretary or other authorised person. Priority Process is experienced in corporate service and will advise on the most appropriate method for the entity in question.
7. What is substituted service?
Substituted service — sometimes called alternative service — is a method of service authorised by the court where it has not proved possible to effect service in the manner ordinarily required (typically personal service). An application for substituted service is made to the court, supported by evidence of the attempts made to effect personal service and the reasons why they have failed. The court may then authorise service by an alternative method — such as through a letterbox, by email, by service on a known associate, or by advertisement — and service effected in the authorised manner is treated as valid. Priority Process provides detailed evidence of all service attempts and the circumstances of each attempt, in a form suitable for use in a substituted service application.
8. Do you serve documents outside Northern Ireland?
Yes. Priority Process serves documents throughout Great Britain — England, Wales and Scotland — and in the Republic of Ireland. We also serve documents internationally through our established network of agents and through the mechanisms available under the Hague Service Convention and bilateral service arrangements. For documents to be served in Great Britain, we work with vetted agents across the relevant jurisdiction. Affidavits of service are provided on all instructions irrespective of where service is effected.
9. What is international process serving and the Hague Convention?
The Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters — commonly referred to as the Hague Service Convention — is a multilateral treaty that provides a framework for the service of civil and commercial legal documents between signatory states. Where proceedings are commenced in one signatory state and documents are required to be served in another, the Convention establishes formal and informal channels through which service may be effected. The formal channel requires transmission through a designated Central Authority in the receiving state; the informal channels — including service through a judicial officer, official or competent person in the receiving state — are available unless the receiving state has lodged a formal objection. Priority Process manages the Hague Convention process from initial instruction through to confirmed service, and we advise on the most appropriate service route for each jurisdiction.
10. What is skip tracing or people tracing?
Skip tracing — more commonly referred to in the UK as people tracing or subject tracing — is the process of locating an individual whose current address or whereabouts are unknown. The term derives from the notion of a subject who has ‘skipped’ — left without a known forwarding address. Priority Process conducts people tracing investigations using a combination of authorised database searches, open-source intelligence techniques and, where necessary, field enquiries. All tracing investigations are conducted within the lawful framework established by UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the applicable codes of practice. The results of a successful trace are reported to the instructing solicitor and, where appropriate, used immediately to effect service.
11. Is surveillance legal in Northern Ireland?
Surveillance is lawful in Northern Ireland when conducted for a legitimate purpose, by proportionate means, and in a manner consistent with the relevant legal framework — including the Human Rights Act 1998, the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (as applicable to the private sector), the Protection from Harassment (Northern Ireland) Order 1997, and the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018. Priority Process conducts overt and covert surveillance for legitimate investigative purposes — including evidence gathering for civil litigation, insurance matters, family proceedings and employment investigations — and all operations are assessed for legality and proportionality before they are undertaken. We do not conduct surveillance that we believe would be unlawful or that does not serve a legitimate investigative purpose. Full reports with supporting evidence are provided at the conclusion of each operation.
12. What is due diligence?
Due diligence, in an investigative context, refers to the process of independently verifying and investigating information about an individual, company or asset before a significant decision — such as entering a commercial agreement, making an investment, or appointing a director — is made. A due diligence investigation may include searching court records for judgments and litigation history, reviewing Companies House records and insolvency registers, verifying qualifications and employment history, and conducting open-source and database searches for adverse or reputational information. Priority Process provides due diligence investigation services for solicitors, businesses, HR professionals, insolvency practitioners and investors, producing structured, evidenced reports that can be disclosed and relied upon.
13. How much does process serving cost?
The cost of process serving depends on the nature of the instruction, the geographic location of the subject, the urgency of the instruction and the number of attempts required. Priority Process provides a clear and transparent cost structure, and we will quote for each instruction before commencing work. We do not charge for initial consultations or enquiries. For instructing solicitors, we are familiar with the cost implications of process serving for the purposes of costs recovery in litigation and can provide documentation in a format suitable for inclusion in a bill of costs. Please contact us on 028 9092 3333 to discuss your specific requirements and obtain a quote.
14. Are you licensed and regulated?
Yes. Priority Process — operated by JMC Legal Services Limited trading as Priority Process (company number NI690494) — is PSA-licensed and registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO registration C1292310). Our director, Justin McGibbon, is a member of the Association of British Investigators (ABI) — the oldest established professional body for investigators in the UK, whose UK GDPR Code of Conduct is approved by the Information Commissioner’s Office — and a member of the World Association of Professional Investigators (WAPI), where he serves as Welfare Officer. We operate in accordance with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements and maintain professional indemnity insurance.
15. How do I instruct Priority Process?
Instructing Priority Process is straightforward. You can contact us by telephone on 028 9092 3333, by email, or through the contact form on our website. When instructing for process serving, please provide the documents to be served, the name and last known address of the subject, any information you hold about the subject’s movements or place of work, and any court-imposed deadline for service. We will confirm receipt of your instruction, agree the scope of work and costs, and proceed to service promptly. We accept instructions from solicitors, barristers, legal executives and — where the matter is straightforward and does not require legal advice — from individuals and businesses directly. Our office is located at Wellington Business Park Centre, 3 Wellington Park, Belfast BT9 6DJ.