Substituted service – High Court – Uniform Rule of Court 4(2)
Substituted service is ordered when the defendant is believed to be in the Republic of South Africa but one of the normal forms of service set out in the rules cannot be effected. It differs from edictal citation which is ordered when the defendant is or is believed to be out of the Republic, or the exact whereabouts of the defendant are unknown.
The process of substituted service involves an application to the court for leave to effect such substituted service and the applicant must set out –
• the nature of and extent of the claim;
• the grounds upon which the claim is based;
• the grounds upon which the court has jurisdiction to entertain the claim;
• the manner of service which the court is asked to authorise;
• the last known whereabouts of the person to be served;
• the inquiries which have been made to ascertain the present whereabouts;
and
• any information which may assist the court in deciding whether leave should be granted and, if so, on what terms.
The court then gives directions authorizing some form of substituted service and may order any manner of service as is likely to bring the proceedings to the notice of the party to be served. This may be in the form of publication in one or more ewspapers, registered letter to the defendant at his or her last known address, care of his or her relatives or legal advisers, affixing the process ad valvas curiae, facsimile transmission (fax), Facebook message addressed to the inbox of the defendant’s Facebook page, electronic mail (e-mail) or other electronic means, or by a combination of these and other methods. The service, in order to be valid, must be in accordance with the order of the court. When publication in an Afrikaans paper is ordered, the advertisement must be in Afrikaans. If the paper is bilingual, a special order as to the language of the advertisement should be made and in the absence of such an order, either language will do.
Substituted service – High Court – Uniform Rule of Court 4(2)
To view the rule go to Department of Justice – Uniform Rules of Court
For more go to the South African Legal Information Institute (SAFLII)
