Can a process server leave papers with a family member in Florida?

Yes, at the defendant’s usual place of abode with a resident who is 15 or older, after explaining what the papers are. The affidavit records who accepted them.

Can a process server come into a gated community in Miami?

Yes. Florida law allows a certified process server to enter a gated community to attempt service after showing credentials.

What if the defendant moved?

We stop attempts, report it in your portal and can run a skip trace for a current address before continuing.

What is an affidavit of due diligence?

A sworn statement listing every attempt made, with dates, times, GPS positions and what was found. Courts rely on it when service could not be completed.

How to serve someone who is avoiding service in Miami-Dade

First, make the attempts count

Most "evasive" defendants are simply never home when a server shows up at 2 PM. Our first move is to vary the timing: an early morning, an evening after 7 PM, a Saturday. Each attempt is logged with GPS, time, a photo and a note about what we saw, cars in the driveway, lights on, a neighbor's comment. That log is the due diligence a court expects to see.

Substitute service at the home

Florida law allows papers to be left at the defendant's usual place of abode with a person who lives there and is 15 or older, as long as the server explains what the documents are. A spouse, adult child or roommate who answers the door can be served this way. What does not count: a neighbor, a housekeeper who does not live there, or leaving the papers at the door. We record the name and description of the person served in the affidavit.

Service at work or anywhere else

Personal service does not have to happen at home. The workplace, a courthouse hallway, a gym, a restaurant: if we can identify the person, we can hand them the papers. When we know a defendant's schedule from earlier attempts, we plan for it and coordinate with you first, because a workplace serve should be discreet.

Gated communities and condominiums

Florida Statute 48.081 and related rules give a certified process server the right to enter a gated residential community to attempt service, and a guard may not refuse entry when the server shows credentials. High-rises are different: the concierge can refuse a walk-up, so we document the building policy and use the hours residents pass through the lobby. In some buildings the law allows service on the building's authorized agent for evictions; ask us about the specific case.

Businesses that hide behind a registered agent

Every Florida company must keep a registered agent on file with the Division of Corporations. If the office is closed or the owner is never in, service on the registered agent during business hours is valid. When the registered agent has resigned or the address is stale, the statute provides a fallback sequence, and we walk you through it.

When the address is wrong

If attempts show the person moved, we stop and tell you rather than burning attempts. A skip trace, using databases, property records and public sources, usually produces a current address within a day. Our field app flags this in your portal as soon as the server learns it.

If every reasonable attempt fails, Florida allows constructive service by publication in certain cases, but only after a sworn statement of diligent search. That is a decision for your attorney; we supply the affidavit of due diligence documenting everything we did.

What you get either way

Served: a notarized affidavit with the date, time, place, manner of service and a description of the person. Not served after the full round of attempts: an affidavit of due diligence listing every attempt with its GPS position and photo. Both are e-filing ready and appear in your portal the moment they are signed.

Serving someone who is avoiding service in Miami-Dade