Spouse intends to avoid serving and I plan to serve at workplace because I don't know spouse's home address.
Or would it be better to hire a process server to serve papers? Should I be looking for process servers approved by the court or any would do?
Technically, New Jersey Court Rule requires that you serve someone at his "dwelling place or usual place of abode" and if you cannot do that you need to apply to the Court for an Order allowing you to effectuate what is called "substituted service."
However, you may wish to try to serve him at his place of business without a court Order, with the hope that he will respond.
Assuming that your spouse lives and works in New Jersey, I agree with Ms. Valentin.
Please note: You definitely should NOT send the papers by certified mail, if your spouse is trying to avoid service. Pursuant to New Jersey Court Rule, service by certified mail will NOT be deemed to be effective service unless your spouse answers the Complaint or other formally appears in the case. So, if he just ignores the Complaint and does nothing, you will have to serve him all over again.
I use neither. I use a private company for service of process in cases where it is expected that the other party will avoid service of process. It costs $60 but the turnaround is within a week or less. No charge if they can't serve
I would agree private process server is the quickest. I wouldn't think certified mail is appropriate if you are trying to serve spouse at the workplace. A sheriff can also be used but they are not as efficient or diligent as a private server would be.
Serving the papers directly on your spouse, via process server, is the best way.
The only way it can work by sending via certified mail (or even regular mail) is if your spouse voluntarily signs an "Acknowledgment of Service." However, since your spouse will not accept service and will therefore not likely sign an "Acknowledgment of Service," then proceed with the process server. There are many private companies that provide that service, and I use Guaranteed Subpoena most often.
Yes, you can serve the spouse at work. Technically, you can serve your spouse anywhere you can find him/her in NJ, including work. You can also serve your spouse outside of NJ, but there are special and preliminary requirements which must be met. The private company you use will work with you to figure out the best way of handling this depending on your particular situation.
