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Philippine Supreme Court Approves Guidelines on the Implementation of Hague Service Convention on Judicial Documents

The Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters (“Hague Service Convention”) establishes a streamlined transmission of judicial and extrajudicial documents from One State Party to Another, and provides transnational litigants with methods for the service of documents abroad, simplifies and expedites the service of documents abroad, and guarantees that service will be brought to the notice of the recipient in sufficient time.

On 4 March 2020, the Republic of the Philippines deposited its Instruments of Accession to the Hague Service Convention at the Peace Palace, The Hague, Netherlands. In line with this, on 11 September 2020, the Supreme Court approved Administrative Order No. 251-2020 which provides the Guidelines on the Implementation in the Philippines of the Hague Service Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial Documents in Civil and Commercial Matters (“the Guidelines”). The Guidelines took effect on 1 October 2020.

Article 2 of the Hague Service Convention provide that State Parties must designate a Central Authority which will undertake to receive requests for such service of documents. For the Philippines, the Supreme Court designated the Office of the Court Administrator (“OCA”) as the Central Authority.

Under the Guidelines, the Hague Service Convention shall apply in the Philippines, provided the following conditions are present:

  1. A document is to be transmitted from one State Party for service to another State Party;
  2. The address of the intended recipient in the receiving State Party is known;
  3. The document to be served is a judicial document; and
  4. The document to be served relates to a civil or commercial matter.

Procedure for Outbound Requests for Service

A party in a civil or commercial proceeding may file a motion for leave of court for extraterritorial service. Such motion shall be accompanied, in duplicate, by the following documents:

  1. A copy of the Model Form, which refers to the form annexed to the Hague Service Convention, including the Request, Certificate, Summary of Documents to be Served, and Warning;
  2. The original documents to be served or certified true copies thereof, including all annexes;
  3. Certified translations of the Model Form and all accompanying documents, where necessary;
  4. An undertaking to pay in full any fees associated with the service of the documents; and
  5. Any other requirements of the Requested State, considering its reservations, declarations, and notifications, which may be found in the HCCH website.

If the court finds that extraterritorial service under the Hague Service Convention is warranted, it shall issue an Order to that effect. The Order shall include a directive for the requesting party to procure and submit a prepaid courier pouch which shall be used for the transmission of documents from the court to the Central Authority of the Requested State. The Judge, in the case of lower courts, or the Justice or the Clerk of Court, in the case of collegiate courts, shall accomplish and sign the Request, check the completeness of the documents, and ensure compliance with the requirements of the Hague Service Convention and that of the Requested State.

When the request for service entails costs and fees, the party, in accordance with his/her undertaking, shall settle the payment and submit the required proof of payment to the clerk of court.

Once all the requirements are submitted by the party requesting the extraterritorial service, the court shall coordinate with the Central Authority of the Requested State and transmit the following:

  1. The Order granting the extraterritorial service;
  2. The filled-out Request and Summary of Document to be Served with Warning;
  3. The blank Certificate to be completed by the Central Authority of the Requested State;
  4. The documents sought to be served; and
  5. Certified translations of the Model Form and all accompanying documents, where necessary.

The court shall furnish the OCA with a copy of the request and provide updates to the OCA on the status of its request.

The Central Authority of the Requested State shall then process the request and attempt service in accordance with its domestic laws. It shall thereafter provide formal confirmation whether the service was successful or unsuccessful, using the Certificate annexed to the Hague Service Convention. The completed Certificate shall be transmitted back to the requesting court and shall form part of the records of the case.

Procedure for Inbound Requests for Service

All inbound requests for service of judicial documents originating from other state parties shall be referred to the OCA, either through electronic or physical transmission. The following are the requirements for requests for service of documents from other state parties:

  1. The documents sought to be served are judicial;
  2. The Request conforms to the Model form;
  3. The document sought to be served is attached to the Request;
  4. The Request and its attachment/s are accomplished/translated in English or Filipino;
  5. The Request and its attachment/s are filed in duplicate; and
  6. The address of the intended recipient is indicated with sufficient specificity.

All requests must be accompanied by payment of One Hundred US Dollars (USD100.00) for costs of service for each recipient to be served.

If the request is sufficient in form, the OCA shall forward the request to the court having jurisdiction over the area where the intended recipient resides. The Executive Judge in multiple-sala courts, or the Presiding Judge in single-sala courts, shall immediately assign a sheriff, process server, or any other competent personnel to serve the document in accordance with the Rules of Court.

The officer assigned to serve the document shall execute a return on the service in accordance with the Rules of Court, and submit the same to the judge of the court who directed the service of the document within five (5) days from service. If the document was not delivered successfully, the return shall state the reasons which prevented the successful service.

As soon as the return on the service is submitted, whether the service is successful or not, the judge shall immediately accomplish and sign the Certificate, following the Model Form annexed to the Hague Service Convention. In cases of unsuccessful service, the documents sought to be served shall be attached to the Certificate.

Within thirty (30) calendar days from receipt of the request, the judge shall transmit the duly accomplished Certificate and the Return of Service to the Forwarding Authority of the Requesting State. These shall be accompanied by either: (a) a copy of the documents served, in cases of successful service, or (b) the original documents, in case of unsuccessful service. The judge shall furnish the OCA with a copy of all the documents transmitted, for monitoring purposes. Should compliance exceed thirty (30) calendar days, the judge shall also submit an explanation to the OCA for the delay.
The full text of Administrative Order No. 251-2020 can be accessed here.