AERO COSTA RICA, INC., A FLORIDA CORPORATION, AND AERO COSTA RICA ACORI, S.A., A FOREIGN CORPORATION, PETITIONERS,
v.
DISPATCH SERVICES, INC. A FLORIDA CORPORATION, RESPONDENT
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Aero Costa Rica challenged a trial court's denial of a protective order that would have prevented the deposition of a non-resident Costa Rican corporate officer in Florida. The court held that substituted service of the subpoena was invalid and that depositions of non-resident officers of non-resident corporate defendants not seeking affirmative relief must be taken at the deponent's place of residence absent extraordinary circumstances.
The court held that the trial court erred by denying the protective order for two independent reasons: (1) the substituted service of the witness subpoena was legally insufficient under Florida Statutes sections 48.031(1)(a) and (3), and (2) even if service had been proper, depositions of non-resident officers of non-resident corporate defendants not seeking affirmative relief must be taken at the deponent's place of residence absent extraordinary circumstances.
[1] Substituted service of a witness subpoena is legally insufficient if it does not comply with statutory requirements for personal service.
[2] Statutes governing substituted service of process must be strictly construed and strictly complied with.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Statues which govern substituted service of process are to be strictly construed and also, they must be strictly complied with.”
Establishes the strict compliance standard for service of process statutes, which the trial court violated
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceDispatch Services filed a breach of contract and account stated complaint against Aero Costa Rica Acori, a foreign corporation. Dispatch Services subp…
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GREEN, Judge.
Respondent, Dispatch Services, Inc., filed a two count complaint against petitioner, Aero Costa Rica Acori, S.A., a foreign corpo ration, for breach of contract and account stated. The petitioner, in turn, sought no affirmative relief in the action below. Subsequently, the respondent subpoenaed for deposition in Dade County, Florida, Calixto Chavez, president of Aero Costa Rica. Chavez is a resident of Costa Rica. Respondent served Mr. Chavez by serving another employee of Aero Costa Rica. Mr. Chavez was subpoenaed in his individual capacity and not as a corporate representative. In fact, the respondent simultaneously noticed for deposition the petitioner’s corporate representative with the most knowledge of the allegations which gave rise to this action. Mr. Chavez was not designated as the corporate representative based on the petitioner’s assertion that he had no knowledge of the facts and circumstances surrounding this action. The petitioner moved for a protective order prohibiting the respondent from deposing Mr. Chavez in Dade County, Florida. The trial court’s denial of this motion prompted this appeal which we treat as a petition for writ of certiorari.
We first find that the lower court’s denial of the motion for protective order to be a departure from the essential requirements of the law because the substituted service of the witness subpoena on Mr. Chavez was legally insufficient pursuant to sections 48.031(l)(a) and (3), Florida Statutes. This statute mandates in relevant part that:
(l)(a) Service of original process is made by delivering a copy of it to the person to be served with a copy of the complaint, petition, or other initial pleading or paper or by leaving the copies at his or her usual place of abode with any person residing therein who is 15 years of age or older and informing the person of their contents.
(3) The service of process of witness subpoenas, whether in criminal eases or civil actions, is to be made as provided in subsection (1).
§ 48.031(l)(a), (3), Fla. Stat. (1995).
Statues which govern substituted service of process are to be strictly construed and also, they must be strictly complied with. See Hauser v. Schiff, 341 So. 2d 531, 531 (Fla. 3d DCA 1977). Clearly then, the respondents purported substitute service of the witness subpoena on another employee of the petitioner’s corporation did not satisfy the requirements for obtaining personal service on Mr. Chavez pursuant to section 48.031. See Stoeffler v. Castagliola, 629 So. 2d 196, 197-98 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993).
Even if the service of the witness subpoena had been properly effected against Mr. Chavez, either personally or by serving someone at his usual place of abode, his deposition in Dade County, Florida would still be improper and a departure from the essential requirements of the law because we have held that, “[i]n the absence of extraordinary circumstances ..., the deposition of a non-resident officer of a non-resident corporate defendant not seeking affirmative relief is to be taken at deponent’s place of residence”. United Teachers Assocs. Ins. Co. v. Vanwinkle, 657 So. 2d 1232, 1232-33 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995).
Thus, for these reasons, we grant the writ and quash the order under review.
Writ granted.
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Shurman v. Atl. Mortg. & Inv. Corp., 795 So. 2d 952 (Fla. 2001)…s receiving notice of actions against them, statutes governing service of process are to be strictly construed and enforced. See Schupak v. Sutton Hill Assocs., 710 So. 2d 707, 708 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998); Aero Costa Rica, Inc. v. Dispatch Servs., Inc., 710 So. 2d 218, 219 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998); Hauser v. Schiff, 341 So. 2d 531, 531 (Fla. 3d DCA 1977). In Heffernan, this Court defined the term “usual place of abode” as meaning the place where the defendant is actually living at the time of service. See Heffernan, 1…
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Fed. Nat'l Mortg. Ass'n v. Fandino, 751 So. 2d 752 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000)…ict compliance with the statutes governing this form of service is essential to obtaining valid personal jurisdiction over the defendant(s). See Linn v. Kidd, 714 So. 2d 1185, 1187 (Fla. 1st DCA 1998); Aero Costa Rica, Inc. v. Dispatch Servs., Inc., 710 So. 2d 218, 219 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998); Corneal v. O’Brien, 707 So. 2d 908, 908 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998); Floyd v. Federal Nat’l Mortgage Assoc., 704 So. 2d 1110, 1112 (Fla. 5th DCA 1998); Wyatt v. Haese, 649 So. 2d 905, 907 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995); Hobbs v. Don Medley Chev…
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Dep't OF Revenue v. Wright, 813 So. 2d 989 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002)…right’s motion that Wright’s mother was served at 1211 Scott Street. “Statutes which govern substituted service of process are to be strictly construed and also, they must be strictly complied with.” Aero Costa Rica, Inc., v. Dispatch Servs., Inc., 710 So. 2d 218, 219 (Fla.3d DCA 1998). In Aero Costa Rica, substitute service of a witness subpoena on another employee of the witness’s corporation did not meet the requirements of section 48.031. Here, section 48.031(1) was followed in that Wright’s mother, who…
Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Hauser v. Schiff, 341 So. 2d 531 (Fla. 3d DCA 1977)
- Gay Stoeffler v. Castagliola, 629 So. 2d 196 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993)
- United Teachers Assocs. Ins. Co. v. Vanwinkle, 657 So. 2d 1232 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995)