What it is
An affidavit of service, also called a return of service, is the sworn statement by the person who delivered the papers. It tells the court that the defendant was served, and how. Without it the case cannot move: no default, no hearing, no judgment.
What it has to contain
- The date and time of service, and the address where it happened.
- The manner of service: personal, substitute on a resident aged 15 or older, on a registered agent, or posting where the statute allows it.
- The name and a description of the person served, or the person who accepted the papers.
- The documents served, listed by name.
- The server's name, certification number and signature, sworn before a notary or under the penalties of perjury as the rule allows.
Every affidavit we sign also cites the attempts that came before the successful one, with dates and times, so the record shows diligence even when the serve succeeded.
Who can sign it
In Miami-Dade, private service of process is performed by process servers certified by the county, or by the sheriff. Our servers hold Miami-Dade Certified Process Server credentials and are NAPPS members. An affidavit signed by an uncertified person can be struck.
How it is filed
Attorneys file the affidavit through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal into the case. Our affidavits are produced as clean PDFs with a proper caption, so they upload without reformatting. Self-represented parties can file through the same portal or at the clerk's office. If you would rather we file it, a court filing run is $65 and we bring back the conformed copy.
When service is challenged
A defendant who claims they were never served will move to quash service. The judge looks at the affidavit and, if it comes to that, the server's records. This is why we log GPS coordinates, a time stamp and a photo on every attempt: the affidavit says where and when, and the log proves it. Vague affidavits lose those hearings; documented ones win them.
What Florida law says the return must show
The Florida statute on the return of service is section 48.21. It asks the person who serves the papers to note the date and time the papers came to them, the date and time of service, the manner of service, the name of the person served and, when someone is served on behalf of a company or another person, the position that person holds. The return also lists the documents that were served. If a required fact is left out, the statute lets the return be amended to add it, with the court's permission, so a careful server gets it right the first time.
Affidavit of service or affidavit of due diligence
Not every job ends in a serve. When the papers cannot be delivered after the included attempts, the server signs an affidavit of due diligence instead, sometimes called a non-service return. It lists every attempt with its date, time and address, and what the server saw at the door: no answer, a vacant unit, a neighbor who says the person moved. That record is what the court looks at if a party later asks for another way to serve, so a detailed attempt log is worth as much as the affidavit itself.
Mistakes that get a return challenged
- A time of service that is missing, or that does not match the attempt log.
- A description of the person served that does not fit the defendant.
- Substitute service on someone who does not actually live at the address.
- A list of documents that leaves out the complaint or an exhibit.
Each of these is avoidable with a record made at the door. That is why every attempt we make is logged with the time, a GPS point and a photo, and why the affidavit is written from that log, not from memory. You can look up any filed case on the Miami-Dade Clerk of the Court website once the affidavit is in the file.