SERVICE OF JUDICIAL ACTS BY POST RULES

SERVICE OF JUDICIAL ACTS BY POST

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 12.12

SERVICE OF JUDICIAL ACTS BY POST RULES

1st October, 1995

LEGAL NOTICE 132 of 1995, as amended by Legal Notices 181 and 186

of 2006.

The title of these Rules is Service of Judicial Acts by Post

Rules.

In these Rules -

"Code" means the Code of Organization and Civil Procedure;

"court" means any court mentioned in articles 3 and 4 of the

Code;

"judicial act" means any act or written pleading filed in the

registry of, or emanating from, any court, tribunal or board in

Malta, and any act or written pleading filed in, or emanating from

any court, tribunal or board outside Malta, which may, by virtue of

any law or treaty, be served on any person in Malta, but shall not

include the warrants and orders mentioned in Title VII of Book

Second and in Title VI of Book Third of the Code;

"treaty" has the same meaning as is assigned to it by article 2 of

the Ratification of Treaties Act.

(1) Saving the provisions of sub-rule (2) of this rule,

service of judicial acts shall, unless otherwise ordered by a court,

be effected by registered post, and an application for an advice of

delivery shall be made at the time of posting

Provided that the registrar on a request by the party filing

the judicial act may, upon reasonable cause being shown, direct that

service be effected by the executive officers of the courts.

(2)

The provisions of this rule shall not apply to -

(a) applications of appeal;

(b) applications made under the provisions of the

Constitution of Malta and the European Convention

Act;

(c) sworn applications; and

(d) applications referred to in Part II of Book Second of

the Code.

Copies of judicial acts to be served by post as aforesaid

shall be enclosed in an envelope bearing the words "Judicial Act"

in a prominent place.

Where service is to be effected by post, the executive

officers of the courts shall -

(a) prepare the necessary postal documents for such

service and present the relative envelope with the

SERVICE OF JUDICIAL ACTS BY POST

pleading enclosed at the post office;

(b) note in a register to be kept for the purpose, the

particulars in the judicial act mentioned in article 174

of the Code, the date of filing in the registry and the

number of the cash office of the registry marked on the

judicial act, the number given by the postal authorities

to the envelope in which the judicial act is enclosed for

posting, and, if service has been effected, the date of

such service and the date of the return of the advice of

delivery;

(c) draw up a certificate whether the service was effected

or not and in which the particulars mentioned in article

188 of the Code shall also be included; and

(d) inform the party filing a written pleading, or his

advocate or legal procurator, whether service was

effected or not and, if in the affirmative, when.