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Summons and Motion Requirements

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professordad

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? SC

Today I was served by the Sheriff's office with Hearing Request, (Type of Cases: Pre-Trail - Final Hearing); Motion and order information form and cover sheet signed by opposing council; a Summons, (signed by the opposing council); a Rule To Show Cause (Ordering me to appear at a certain date and time); and a Complaint for Rule To Show Cause, signed by opposing council; along with a Verification, signed by my ex-wife; along with exhibits including a letter from a social worker, which is also not notarized.

1. The RTSC to appear, while it has a date and time to appear, is NOT signed by the judge or dated;

2. The Complaint, while signed by opposing council, is not notarized;

3.The Verification, while signed by my ex-wife, is not notarized;

4. The letter from the social worker is not notarized.

5. There is no received stamp from the clerk of courts office on any of the documents.

What is the status of these documents?
Are they in their present state, no stamp, no judges signature, no clerk of court stamp of receipt and filing, sufficient for service?
Are they required to be?
Can the letter from the sw be admitted since it is not notarized?

Any light you could shed on this would be appreciated.

SC Family Court
 


LdiJ

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? SC

Today I was served by the Sheriff's office with Hearing Request, (Type of Cases: Pre-Trail - Final Hearing); Motion and order information form and cover sheet signed by opposing council; a Summons, (signed by the opposing council); a Rule To Show Cause (Ordering me to appear at a certain date and time); and a Complaint for Rule To Show Cause, signed by opposing council; along with a Verification, signed by my ex-wife; along with exhibits including a letter from a social worker, which is also not notarized.

1. The RTSC to appear, while it has a date and time to appear, is NOT signed by the judge or dated;

2. The Complaint, while signed by opposing council, is not notarized;

3.The Verification, while signed by my ex-wife, is not notarized;

4. The letter from the social worker is not notarized.

5. There is no received stamp from the clerk of courts office on any of the documents.

What is the status of these documents?
Are they in their present state, no stamp, no judges signature, no clerk of court stamp of receipt and filing, sufficient for service?
Are they required to be?
Can the letter from the sw be admitted since it is not notarized?

Any light you could shed on this would be appreciated.

SC Family Court
All I can tell you for certain is that none of the documents require notarization because an attorney is involved. I also have some concern due to the fact that there is no "filed" stamp/case number attached to the documents.

Other than that, its up to the rules of the local courts...which I would guess that an attorney would know quite well.

I would suggest that you get yourself a consult with a local attorney ASAP. That doesn't mean that you necessarily have to retain one for the divorce, but you definitely need to pay for an hour or so of an attorney's time to understand what you are dealing with.
 

Ronin

Member
I agree that you really need to have an attorney review this ASAP.

Since an attorney filed a contempt proceeding against you on your ex's behalf, you should not waste time over-analyzing trivialities such as service and notarizations and file stampings, and instead spend your efforts preparing to respond to the complaint.

It's probably a safe bet to assume this attorney has filed many Complaints in the past, understands the procedural requirements, and is not going to be tripped up over such things. Even so, these types of errors are curable, and at worst will only delay the proceedings a bit, and not make your problem go away.

The Verification asserts that the one filing the complaint swears they have knowlege of all the facts alleged in the complaint, and that they are truthful.

While the letter from the social worker did not need to be notarized given the attached verification, the letter is hearsay. But your ex's attorney may be prepared to have the social worker testify about this at the hearing, which is not hearsay. The letter could be to give you fair notice what to expect.

A hearing notice does not need to be signed by a judge.
 
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professordad

Junior Member
I agree that you really need to have an attorney review this ASAP.

Since an attorney filed a contempt proceeding against you on your ex's behalf, you should not waste time over-analyzing trivialities such as service and notarizations and file stampings, and instead spend your efforts preparing to respond to the complaint.

The Verification asserts that the one filing the complaint swears they have knowlege of all the facts alleged in the complaint, and that they are truthful.

While the letter from the social worker did not need to be notarized given the attached verification, the letter is hearsay. But your ex's attorney may be prepared to have the social worker testify about this at the hearing, which is not hearsay. The letter could be to give you fair notice what to expect.

A hearing notice does not need to be signed by a judge.
After I posted, I did speak with my attorney. Lack of seal is lack of service. No judges signature is also lack of service. At least he is going to argue that. The verification is not notarized which is problematic as well. As far as hearsay, even a social workers testimony is hearsay unless the judge admits it in to court. I believe your last statement, and believe it was sent to further provoke and intimidate me. I have filed for sole custody and my ex has counter filed; it is a classic case of parental alienation on the mother's part to the detriment of our child who is only a victim in this all out war of the roses.
 

Ronin

Member
Did your attorney actually have the opportunity to review all of the filings in the last three hours since you first posted? Either way, even if all these were flawed, which is hard to believe, they are curable and can be refiled and served again very quickly.

As far as hearsay, even a social workers testimony is hearsay unless the judge admits it in to court.
Depends on what the social worker is testifying to. It may or may not be hearsay. If repeating something the child said, it is hearsay, although there are hearsay exceptions to this. If testifying to something she witnessed about the child's behavior or making any professional opinions, that is not hearsay. Determining the admissability of, and any weight given to such evidence, is up to the judge.
 

professordad

Junior Member
Thanks for your clarification of hearsay. I appreciate that.
I read and went through each of the documents with my attorney on the phone, and no he has not reviewed them. We shall see. Thanks again for your insightful comments.
 

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