 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Kaur v. Halter2/14/2000
Harvinder Kaur appeals the dismissal of her personal injury lawsuit on the basis of insufficient service of process. Kaur attempted to effectuate substitute service of process under RCW 4.28.080 by serving process on one of the Halters' adult daughters at what was believed to be defendant Douglas Halter's residence. In fact, neither Douglas Halter nor the daughter accepting service resided at that location; the home was the residence of another of the Halters' adult daughters. Because service did not comply with statutory requirements, we affirm the dismissal of the case.
FACTS
Harvinder Kaur was allegedly injured on January 24, 1995, when her automobile was struck by a car that Douglas Halter was driving. Under RCW 4.16.080, the statute of limitations on a personal injury claim is three years. The three-year period in which Kaur could have commenced an action against Halter expired on January 24, 1998. Kaur filed a personal injury suit against Dougas Halter and his wife Frances in King County Superior Court on January 16, 1998. Under RCW 4.16.170, Kaur had an additional 90 days to perfect service on the Halters.
On January 20, 1998, Sandy Goad, a process server, served copies of the summons and complaint upon a woman who identified herself as "Ms. Halter" at the address of 422 M Street Northeast, Auburn, Washington. According to Goad's affidavit, the woman told Goad that she was "a resident" at this address, and that her father, the defendant, "resided there on and off." The woman told Goad that Mrs. Halter also resided there and that Mr. Halter "was supposed to be back the next day." Goad further attested:
Two questions I would always ask would be "do you live here" and "does the subject live here." Unless the answer to both questions is in the affirmative, I would not leave copies of papers. In this case the answers were both affirmative and I left copies of the papers with Ms. Halter.
The woman who accepted service was Darla Pomber, an adult daughter of the Halters. Pomber's affidavit disputes Goad's account of the conversation. According to Pomber, she did not in fact reside at the 422 M Street Northeast address; the address was instead the home of Dolonda Raynor, another adult daughter of the Halters. Pomber attested that she was merely visiting her sister's home at the time, and did not stay overnight. Pomber attested:
While I was visiting at 422 M Street Northeast, an older unkempt woman came on the property and attempted to give me papers for my father. The woman asked if Douglas Halter was there and I said he was not. Then she asked if I would see him soon. I told her I was leaving pretty quick and I did not know when I would see him again. She then handed me the papers anyway, and left.
Pomber was not told that the documents were legal papers and did not think that they were important. Although Pomber intended to give the documents to her father the next time she saw him, she neglected to do so.
Douglas Halter attested that he does not live at the 422 M Street Northeast address. In 1994, Halter did reside there temporarily. But since December 1994, Halter has lived in a mobile home at 900 29th Street Southeast, D-2, Auburn, Washington.
Halter concedes that the Department of Licensing in Olympia indicated his address to be 422 M Street Northeast in Auburn at the time that Goad attempted service, and that this is the address appearing on his driver's license. Further, the police traffic collision report of the January 24, 1995, accident listed Halter's address as 422 M Street Northeast, Auburn, Washington. Halter explained that he uses his daughter Dolonda's home a
Page 1 2 3 4 Washington Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|