What Exactly is a Summons?

What exactly is a Summons?

A summons is a legally binding document that may be issued by a court (judicial summons) or by a government administrative body (administrative summons) for a variety of purposes.

Judicial summons

A judicial summons is served on an individual who is a party to a judicial process. A legal action against the individual may be pending, or the individual’s appearance as a witness may be required. [1] if the summons directs someone hat will be a witnesst, the summons will normally inform the recipient that a legal process has been commenced against them and that a case has been opened in the issuing court. In some jurisdictions, it may be written in difficult-to-understand legalese, whereas many states in the United States expressly require summonses to be written in simple English.

The summons specifies a date by which the summoned person or individuals must appear in court or submit a written response to the court or the opposing party or parties. The summons is the common law’s descendent of the writ. It supersedes the traditional method in common-law countries, where the plaintiff had to request an arrest of the defendant in order for the court to have personal jurisdiction over him in both criminal and civil actions.

Different types of summonses

Citation/claim (legal term)

A citation, traffic violation ticket, or notice to appear is a type of summons prepared and served at the scene of an incident by a law enforcement official, requiring the defendant to appear before a local magistrate within a specified time period to answer for a minor traffic infraction, misdemeanor, or other summary offense. Failure to attend within the allowed time frame is a distinct offense.

Civil summons

Typically, a civil summons is accompanied by a complaint. Depending on the form of summons, there is frequently an option to endorse the summons in order to identify the entity being served. In the California court system, summonses frequently provide the following endorsement options for civil unlimited matters in superior court:

1. as an individual;
2. as the person sued under the fictitious name of __________________;

3. on behalf of (usually for a company); or

4. by personal delivery on __________

Administrative Summons

The United States’ tax code has an example of an administrative summons. The Internal Revenue Code empowers the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to issue a summons compelling a taxpayer—or any person in possession of books of account relating to a taxpayer’s business—to appear before the United States Secretary of the Treasury or his delegate (generally, this means the IRS employee who issued the summons) at the time and place specified in the summons. [2] The summoned individual may be required to present books, papers, records, or other data and to testify before an IRS employee under oath. [3]

Additionally, the IRS has the authority to issue section 7602 summonses for the purpose of “investigating any crime relating to the administration or enforcement of the internal revenue laws.”

The summons may be enforced through a court order,[5] and failure to obey the summons carries a criminal penalty of up to one year in prison, a fine, or both,[6], except that the person summoned may, to the extent applicable, assert a privilege against self incrimination or other evidentiary privileges.

A “Notice to Appear” is an administrative summons issued by an immigration court in the United States ordering a respondent to appear before an immigration court for removal proceedings.

United States of America

In the majority of US jurisdictions, serving of a summons is typically needed before the court can exercise jurisdiction over the summoned party.

[9] The act of serving a summons is referred to as service of process. In federal courts, Rule 4 of the Federal Standards of Civil Procedure governs the manner and content of serving, and many state courts have adopted similar rules. Typically, the clerk of the court issues the federal summons. While an attorney may issue the summons in many jurisdictions, some states rely on filing to initiate an action, and in those states, the attorney must first file the summons in triplicate before it becomes effective. The court clerk stamps one or more copies with the court seal and returns them to the attorney, who subsequently uses them to serve the defendants. Other jurisdictions may require the summons to be filed only after the defendants have been served. New York is notable for its liberal filing procedure, which does not need the summons or complaint to be filed at all.

References[edit]

1. ^Ministry of Justice. “Civil Procedure Rules 1998”. www.dca.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 2005-09-14.
2. ^“Rule 4 – Summons – Federal Rules of Civil Procedure”.
3. ^ Jump up to:^ab cY. CPLR § 308 (2), (3), (4). Found at New York State Assembly website, under CVP article 3.
4. ^According to com
5. ^“dmdc.osd.mil”.
6. ^Y. CPLR § 308 (5).
7. ^“CanLII – 2012 ABQB 10 (CanLII)”. Canlii.ca. Retrieved 2012-09-03.
8. ^“2011 QCCQ 10324”. CanLII. Retrieved 2012-09-03.
9. ^Robinson, Alex (February 2, 2018). “Toronto lawyer serves claim with Instagram”. Canadian Lawyer Magazine. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
10. ^California Vehicle Code 1808.21(c)
11. ^The National Law Review: The Continuing Relevance of Personal Service of Process
12. ^For N.Y. Civil Practice Law and Rules (CPLR) § 308 and Domestic Relations Law (DRL) § 232, see NY Assembly website. Retrieved September 24, 2008.
13. ^ R. Civ. P. Rule 4(c)(2) https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/rule_4
14. ^ R. Civ. P. Rule 45(b)(1) https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/rule_45
15. ^“Pa. R.C.P. 400-400.1, available at pacode.com”.
16. ^“N.J. Ct. R. 4:4-4(b)(1)(C), available at judiciary.state.nj.us”.
17. ^“Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes : Online Sunshine”. Leg.state.fl.us. 1990-07-01. Retrieved 2012-09-03.
18. ^“Wisconsin Legislature: 801.10(1)”. Docs.legis.wi.gov. Retrieved 2012-09-03.
19. ^“Arizona Court Rules”. Government.westlaw.com. 2010-05-15. Retrieved 2012-09-03.Arizona Court Rules Rule “4.2(b). Direct Service Service of process may be made outside the state but within the United States in the same manner provided in Rule 4.1(d)-(l) of these Rules by a person authorized to serve process under the law of the state where such service is made. This Arizona rule acknowledges other states to determine an authorized process server of their service of process.”]
20. ^NY CPLR § 306-b, found at NY Assembly website. Retrieved September 24, 2008. (The exception is in election law, which is 15 days.)
21. ^“Hawaii Circuit Court Rule 28”(PDf). www.state.hi.us/.