Service of Process on Financial Institutions

Service of process on any sort of financial institution is addressed by Florida Statute 48.092 which, in turn, refers to another statute, 655.0201, for details of the process.

The first specifications pertain to location and time of service. Per this statute, a financial institution may register a particular location with the Department of State as being the designated location for any service of process directed towards that institution. The principal qualifier for this designation is that the appointed location must be available for service at the very least from the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, not including any federal or Florida holidays. Once this specified agent has been registered with the state it becomes the only location at which service of process can be made. A process served at any other facility of that institution will not be recognized by the courts.

The statute goes on to state that if no designated agent for that institution has been made with the state then service can be made to:

• Any officer, director or business agent of that institution
• Any office, branch, or other location in the state where a business is conducted by that institution.

655.0201 Service of process, notice, levy, or demand on financial institutions.—

(1) Notwithstanding any other Florida law, this section establishes the proper location for service of process upon a financial institution for all types of service of process to be made on a financial institution.

(2) A financial institution authorized by federal or state law to transact business in this state may designate with the Department of State a place or registered agent located within the state as the financial institution’s sole location or agent for service of process, notice, levy, or demand. Any such place or registered agent so designated must be open and available for service of process during regular business hours on regular business days, which, at a minimum, is any time between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. local time, on Mondays through Fridays, excluding federal and Florida holidays. After a financial institution designates a place or registered agent within this state, such place or registered agent is the sole location for service of process, including service for actions related to garnishment, levy, injunctions, lawsuits, and the attachment of safety deposit boxes, in accordance with chapters 60, 76, and 77, and the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure.

(3)(a) If a financial institution has no registered agent or service cannot be made in accordance with subsection (2), service may be made to any officer, director, or business agent of the financial institution at its principal place of business or at any other branch, office, or place of business in the state.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection

(2), any service required or authorized to be made by the Office of Financial Regulation under the financial institutions codes may be made to any officer, director, or business agent of the financial institution at its principal place of business or any other branch, office, or place of business in the state as set forth in s. 6