Court rules leaving claim form in reception isn’t valid service
Britain’s Court of Appeal determined that lawyers cannot fulfill service requirements by leaving court documents in their office for a delivery service to collect. The decision arose from a dispute where Edwards Duthie Shamash represented tenants of a Barking apartment building damaged by fire who sued Bellway Homes.
The law firm attempted to transmit the claim form by fax between 3:49 p.m. and 4:03 p.m. on Friday, April 21, 2023, but the transmissions failed. Staff then placed the papers in their reception area for the DX courier to retrieve.
Lord Justice Coulson rejected arguments that this method satisfied court rules. The judge said proper service demands an active transfer of documents to the delivery company rather than a passive placement for future pickup.
The ruling upheld an earlier decision that found the claimants missed the 4 p.m. deadline for serving the claim form. Evidence showed the firm continued faxing attempts after the cutoff time.
