Court Rules

I. Mode of service 

1.  No service of a summons shall be required when the defendant, by his solicitor, accepts service, and undertakes in writing to enter an appearance.

2. ^[1]  (1) Service of any summons on the defendant shall, except in the cases in the following rules of this Order specified, be effected:

(i) by personal service upon the person to be served, or

(ii) by personal service upon another person referred to in sub-rule (2) on behalf of the person to be served, or

(iii) by the sending of a copy of the summons by registered prepaid post in an envelope addressed to the person to be served at his last known residence or place of business in the State, or at an address in the State for service provided by the person to be served, provided that such service shall not be deemed effective without proof of delivery of the said envelope to the address of the person to be served, or

(iv) where the defendant is a company, in accordance with section 51 of the Companies Act 2014.

(2) Where it shall appear by affidavit that the defendant is personally within the jurisdiction and that due and reasonable diligence has been exercised in endeavouring to effect personal service on him or her, service of the summons may be effected by delivering a copy thereof at

(a) the defendant's usual or last known place of residence within the jurisdiction, or

(b) the defendant's principal or last known place of business or office,

to the wife, husband, civil partner (within the meaning of section 3 of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010) father, mother, brother, or sister of the defendant, or to any employee of the defendant (the person to whom such copy shall be delivered being of the age of sixteen years or upwards)

and showing to such person the original or duplicate original of such summons.

3. Personal service shall be effected by delivering a copy of the summons to the defendant in person, and showing him the original or duplicate original.

II. On particular defendants 

4. When husband and wife are both defendants in any proceedings, they shall both be served unless the Court shall otherwise order.

5. When an infant is defendant in any proceedings service on his father or mother or guardian, or, if none, then upon the person with whom the infant resides or under whose care he is, shall, unless the Court otherwise orders, be deemed good service on the infant; provided that the Court may order that service made or to be made on the infant shall be deemed good service.

6.^[4] Service on a relevant person (within the meaning of section 2(1) of the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015) who is a defendant to an action, shall be in accordance with Order 15, rule 17.  

7. In the absence of any statutory provision regulating service, every summons issued against a corporation aggregate may be served on the mayor or other head officer, or on the town clerk, clerk, treasurer, or secretary of such corporation; and every summons issued against the inhabitants of a county district or other like district may be served on any officer of the Gárda Síochána not below the rank of superintendent stationed in the county in which such district is situate and every summons issued against the inhabitants of any county or any city or town, or the inhabitants of any franchise, liberty, city, town, or place not being part of the county district or other like district on some peace officer thereof: provided always that in all such cases a sufficient notice of the issuing of the summons shall be given in Iris Oifigiúil and in one of the local newspapers of the county, city, or district in which the defendant or defendants or the officer or other person to be served shall reside, the times for appearing to run in such cases from the day of the publication of such notice in Iris Oifigiúil or such newspaper, whichever shall be the latest; and where, by any statute, provision is made for service of any proceedings upon any corporation, or upon any society or fellowship, or any body or number of persons, whether corporate or incorporate, every summons may be served in the manner so provided.

III. In particular actions 

8. In an action brought for recovery of land for non-payment of rent or for overholding, it shall not be necessary to serve the summons upon any person other than the person or persons in the actual possession of the land or any part thereof, as tenant or under-tenant.

9. In other actions for the recovery of land, it shall be necessary to serve every person in actual possession, or in receipt of the rents and profits, of the lands or any part thereof, unless the Court shall otherwise direct.

10. In actions for the recovery of land service of a summons may be effected either by personal service on the person to be served at any place within the jurisdiction or by delivering a copy of such summons to the wife, husband, child, father, mother, brother, or sister, of such person, at her house, or office, or place of business (the person with whom such copy shall be left being of the age of sixteen years or upwards), and showing to such person the original or duplicate original of such summons, and such service as last aforesaid may be effected whether the person to be served is within the jurisdiction or not.

11. Service of a summons in an action to recover land may, in the case of vacant possession, when it cannot otherwise be effected, be made by posting a copy of the summons upon the door of the dwellinghouse or other conspicuous part of the property; provided, however, that in such case before any judgment by default shall be given, the Court shall be satisfied that there was no person in actual possession or in receipt of the rents and profits on whom other service might have been effected.

IV. General 

12. ^[2]  (1) The person serving a summons shall, within three days at most after service, indorse on the summons the day and date of the service thereof; and every affidavit of service of such summons shall mention the date on which such indorsement was made.

(1A) An Indorsement of service by prepaid registered post shall be in the following terms:

“INDORSEMENT OF SERVICE

I served the within summons on [person to be served] by posting the same by prepaid

registered post to [him] [her] at [address] on the ... day of ........ 20...”

Signed ................

This ... day of ........ 20..”.

(2) Every affidavit of service of a summons by prepaid registered post shall exhibit proof of delivery of the envelope in which a copy of the summons is contained to the address of the person to be served.”;

13. Every affidavit of service of a summons in actions for the recovery of land for non-payment of rent, or for overholding, shall state that the deponent does not know of any person, other than those who have been served, who is in actual possession of the land sought to be recovered or any part thereof, as tenant or under-tenant.

14. Every affidavit of service of a summons in other actions for recovery of land, shall state that the deponent does not know of and does not believe that there is any person, other than those who have been served, in the actual possession or in receipt of the rents and profits of the land sought to be recovered, or any part thereof, and the said statement shall be verified by the affidavit of the plaintiff or of one of the plaintiffs, or of the solicitor for the plaintiff.

15. In any case the Court may, upon just grounds, declare the service actually effected sufficient.

16. ^[3]  This Order shall, so far as practicable, apply to an originating document and to notice in lieu of service, save where any other Order of these Rules requires personal service of such document or notice.