How To Serve Legal Papers in Romania

This article will provide guidance regarding the Romania Process Service. Romania is situated at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Bucharest is the country’s capital and biggest city, with other significant cities including Iași, Cluj-Napoca, Timișoara, Constanța, Craiova, Brașov, and Galați. Click here for How the Hague Convention Simplifies International Process Service.

International Process Service

As of 1859, Romania was a personal union of Moldavia and Wallachia, the two principalities of the Danubian Principalities. Independence from the Ottoman Empire came in 1877 for the new state, which had been known as Romania since 1866. Romania became a communist country and a member of the Warsaw Pact after the war and its conquest by the Red Army. Following the Revolution of 1989, Romania started the process of democratization and marketization. Click Here for information on the Code of Civil Procedure in Romania

Romania has been a member of the United Nations, NATO, and the European Union for more than sixty years. Most Romanians are ethnic Romanians and Eastern Orthodox Christians and speak Romanian, a Romance language, as their primary language. Click Here for Frequently Asked Questions About Process Servers!

BACKGROUND

All Romanian courts with the authority to serve judicial acts directly on receiving authorities in the EU Member States transmit judicial documents. To begin with, there are the District Courts (Judicătoriile), the County Courts (Tribunale) and the High Court of Cassation and Justice (Înalta Curte de Casaţie şi Justiţie). Click here for information on How Rush Process Service Can Expedite Your Case

Applications from authorities whose jurisdiction includes the Romania Process Service of documents outside the country are sent to the district courts where they have their registered offices. Romania’s receiving agency for applications for Romania Process Service of judicial and extra-judicial acts from the EU Member States is the district court in the jurisdiction of the recipient’s residence or registered office.

It is possible to send or fax Romania Process Service applications and attachments via mail or email. Romanis accepts standard application forms completed in English or French in addition to Romanian-language Romania Process Service forms.

The central Romanian authority is the Ministry of Justice. If a Romania Process Service document is placed with a post office or an expedited courier service or a specialized service within the stipulated term, Romania Process Service is regarded to have been delivered on time.

DOMESTIC PROCESS SERVICE IN ROMANIA

When a document is presented to the military unit or detention site administration where the party is being held within the time limit established by law, Romania Process Service is also considered to have been submitted within the authorized timeframe. Click here for information on How Service of Process Ensures A Solid Foundation.

To prove when a Romania Process Service document was submitted, it is necessary to get a post office receipt and an attestation on the document lodged by an express courier service, a specialized communication service; a military unit; or a detention site administration.

When an application is filed with a court, the procedure starts, as stated in Article 192(2) and Article 199(1) of the Code of Civil Procedure. When a statement of claim is submitted in person or via an agent, Romania Process Service is registered and stamped with the date of receipt whether it is transmitted through postal service, courier, fax, email, or electronic document.

Emergency Order No. 13/2013 on postal services defines registered mail Romania Process Service as a flat-rate guarantee against the risks of loss, theft, total or partial destruction or damage to registered mail, and if requested after the delivery of the postal item, proof of submission of the postal sending or delivery without written confirmation.

Correspondence is a written message to be sent to the recipient at the address stated on the item or its packaging. If the postal consignment was sent before the last collection for a certain access point, the posting date is the date on which the postal services collected it via that access point. When a package is delivered after the last day of mail collection, the delivery date is taken to be the following business day that mail is picked up from that specific access point.

In addition to certificates of service completed in Romania, Romania also accepts certificates of service transmitted in English or French. Bailiffs in each appeal court division must record enforcement claims filed against immovable property with those courts’ respective bailiffs. The competent bailiff is the one located within the appellate court division of the debtor’s headquarters or residence if the enforcement proceeding pertains to moveable assets or bank accounts.

The bailiff must apply to the enforcement court for authorization of the enforcement process within three days after registering the enforcement claim. In most cases, the court of the debtor’s principal place of business or residence at the time the bailiff was seized serves as the enforcement court. If the headquarters or domicile of the debtor is situated outside of the country, the local court that has jurisdiction is the court that has jurisdiction over the creditor. If the headquarters or domicile of the creditor is likewise situated outside of the country, the court that has jurisdiction is the bailiffs.

The bailiff will begin the enforcement process after the debtor has been advised of the procedure and has been summoned to pay. Any interested party may seek repayment of enforced measures if the verdict or enforcement process is overturned (intoarcerea executarii silite). When choosing the law governing a contract, local courts recognize and respect the concept of freedom of choice. Regulation (EC) 593/2008 on the law applicable to contractual commitments is the relevant legal instrument (Rome I).

Requested by an application and issued at the desks or electronically via RECOM, personal data of members, shareholders, or other persons can be released online, with an extended electronic signature attached or logically associated or via certificates. In addition to government agencies, such as those in the fields of justice, national defense, and finance, liquidators and bailiffs have access to additional data. As per Regulation (EC) No. 1206/2001 of the 28 May 2001 on the cooperation between the courts of Member States with regard to evidence gathering in civil or commercial matters, authorities in this Member State have to deal with a request to discover an individual’s current address.

The court has the final say on whether or not such Romania Process Service requests are admissible. Fewer letters rogatory are received by Romanian courts, making it difficult to determine if there is a consistent Romania Process Service practice in the country. According to the information available, Romanian courts are generally open to such Romania Process Service requests.

The court clerk can serve Romania Process Service documents, but they can also be delivered via fax, email, or other electronic means that guarantee the transmission of the document’s content and an acknowledgment of receipt of the party to be served has provided the court with his or her contact information for this purpose. When it sends a procedural document, it sends an acknowledgment. Additionally, the court sends a form to be filled out by the recipient with a date of receipt, the recipient’s name, and signature. By fax, email, or other means, the form is returned to the court (Article 154(6) of the Code)

For each party, they may submit copies of the papers they want to use in court that are certified as true (Conform cu original). When a party is asked to provide the original papers before the court, they must be able to do so. Documents that aren’t submitted in this manner will be ignored.

In cases when one party asserts that the other party holds an important document, the court has the authority to require such document to be made public. The court must require disclosure when both sides rely on the same document.

Attorney-client confidentiality is protected by rules. A lawyer must be a member of the Bar to make use of this privilege. Civil and commercial procedural law does not explicitly recognize the without prejudice concept.

HAGUE PROCESS SERVICE IN ROMANIA

The Romania Process Service of procedural documents is carried out free of charge, ex officio, by the court, by the procedural agents of the court, or by another employee thereof. Should this not be possible, they are served by post as registered mail with declared content and acknowledgment of receipt, in a sealed envelope, to which the proof of receipt/report and notice are to be attached. At the request and expense of the interested party, procedural acts may be served by the court, via judicial executors, or by express delivery (Article 154(1), (4), and (5) of the Code of Civil Procedure). The fees of the judicial executors are between RON 20 and RON 400. Click here for information on How Process Servers Protect Your Rights: Myths Debunked

Romania declares that diplomatic agents and foreign consular agents may serve judicial and extra-judicial Romania Process Service documents on Romanian territory only to citizens of the country they represent. As stated in Article 15(1), Romania is opposed to direct service. An application for relief may be submitted within one year after the decision was pronounced. Bailiffs are used to enforcing all court rulings. On the other hand, if a Romania Process Service decision that may be enforced is appealable, the creditor will have to bear the cost of doing so. An amended or nullified court order will mandate repayment of any assets or money that the creditor has secured via enforcement.

Parties can choose a law other than a member state’s, as long as all other relevant elements are located in an EU member state when they make their choice. This will not affect the application, if applicable, or derogation from Community law provisions that cannot be agreed upon in that member state.

LOCATING AN INDIVIDUAL IN ROMANIA FOR PROCESS SERVICE

There are two options for obtaining a Romanian citizen’s Romania Process Service address: either through the Ministry of Internal Affairs or the local personal records office. Those who are curious about the location of a particular law firm or individual can submit a written request to the local personal records office in the area where they are located to obtain certain personal information about Romanian citizens. Such information can be disclosed only with the explicit permission of the individuals concerned.

A valid legal basis does not necessitate consent when the Romania Process Service application is made by certain authorities (police, defense, and justice; social security; etc.) or by individuals whose legitimate interests are proven with documents demonstrating the legal basis. There is a fee of RON 1 per person for specific or low volume requests, which is transferred to the state budget into an IBAN account at the Treasury for Sector 6, Bucharest, tax registration number 26362870 (where the data are supplied by the INEPABD) or into the accounts of local councils (where the data are supplied by the local personal records office).

Each application must bear a RON 5 tax stamp. High volume applications are charged RON 120 per hour in the central computer system or RON 7 per hour in the local computer system, depending on the type of application. In order to exercise their legal tasks, public entities that are competent in certain domains (defense, public order, national security, justice, finance, health, etc.) are exempt from paying fees for the data they need.

The National Trade Register Office or the Trade Register Offices attached to tribunals can be used to obtain the registered office address of a legal person. The applicant can pay for the issuance of certified copies of the records in the register and of the documents submitted, as well as information about the data recorded and certificates attesting to the recording or not of specific documents or facts. As requested, an extended electronic signature is incorporated, appended, or logically linked to the electronic documents.

Information and documents may be provided free of charge to certain authorities, public institutions, legal persons, journalists, media representatives, and diplomatic missions that have been granted accreditation under protocol agreements.

ALTERNATE METHODS OF SERVICE

The Hague Service Convention provides various modes of Romania Process Service of documents such as by postal channel or by diplomatic/consular agents, judicial officers, officials, or other competent persons. These provisions are covered under Articles 8 to 10 and may or not be allowed by member countries as a valid mode of serving the documents in their territory. The method of serving the documents through the Central Agency (Article 5) is not optional but is binding on all the member countries. The services done by the Central Agency usually take a long time: 4 to 12 months. The convention relieves the litigants if they have not received a certificate of Romania Process Service or delivery from the Central Agency even after waiting for six months. In such cases, the Court may give its judgment if it considers that a reasonable time has elapsed. Also, in case of urgency, the court may issue a provisional order or protective measure even before the six-month waiting period.

Romania Process Service by mail is possible only in states that have not objected to that method under Article 10(a) of the convention and if the jurisdiction where the court case takes place allows it under its applicable law.

OUR PROCESS

Documents can be faxed at (800) 296-0115, emailed ps@undisputedlegal.com, or uploaded to our website. We do require prepayment and accept all major credit and debit cards. Once payment is processed, your sales receipt is immediately emailed for your records.

Drop-offs must call and make an appointment first to be added to building security to permit access to our office. Documents for service must be in a sealed envelope with payment in the form of a money order or attorney check (WE DO NOT ACCEPT CASH) payable to UNDISPUTED LEGAL INC.; All documents will be received by our receptionist.

DOMESTIC COVERAGE AREAS:

INTERNATIONAL COVERAGE AREAS:

OFFICE LOCATIONS

New York: (212) 203-8001 – 590 Madison Avenue, 21st Floor, New York, New York 10022
Brooklyn: (347) 983-5436 – 300 Cadman Plaza West, 12th Floor, Brooklyn, New York 11201
Queens: (646) 357-3005 – 118-35 Queens Blvd, Suite 400, Forest Hills, New York 11375
Long Island: (516) 208-4577 – 626 RXR Plaza, 6th Floor, Uniondale, New York 11556
Westchester: (914) 414-0877 – 50 Main Street, 10th Floor, White Plains, New York 10606
Connecticut: (203) 489-2940 – 500 West Putnam Avenue, Suite 400, Greenwich, Connecticut 06830
New Jersey: (201) 630-0114 – 101 Hudson Street, 21 Floor, Jersey City, New Jersey 07302
Washington DC: (202) 655-4450 – 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue, 4 Fl East, Washington DC 20037

for assistance serving legal papers in Romania

Simply pick up the phone and call Toll-Free (800) 774-6922 or click the service you want to purchase. Our dedicated team of professionals is ready to assist you. We can handle all your process service needs; no job is too small or too large!

Contact us for more information about our process serving agency. We are ready to provide service of process to all of our clients globally from our offices in New York, Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island, Westchester, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Washington D.C.

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Sources

1. Law No 189/2003 on international judicial assistance in civil and commercial matters, Article 32(1)(a) and (b).

2. According to Article 32(1)(c) of Law No. 189/2003 on international judicial assistance in civil and commercial matters

3. Ministry of Justice

Directorate for International Law and Judicial Cooperation

Str. Apollodorus No 17, Sector 5, Bucharest 050741

Telephone: +40372041077; Fax No: +40372041079

Service for international judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters

Telephone: +40372041083; Telephone: +40372041218; Fax No: +40372041079, +40372041084

4. In accordance with Article 183 of Law No 134/2010 on the Code of Civil Procedure, reprinted, as modified, and now in effect, the posting date is the day on which the postal consignment was collected by the postal services.

5. Order No 2550 of 14 November 2006 of the Minister for Justice approving minimum and maximum fees for services provided by judicial executors.

6. National Inspectorate for Personal Records and Database Administration – INEPABD, str. Obcina Mare nr. 2, Sector 6, Bucharest, Tel. +40214135442, +40217467047/8/9, Fax +40214135049, Email depabd@mai.gov.ro

7. Local personal records offices and the INEPABD are the bodies that have the authority to rule on applications from legal persons.

8. Bd. Unirii nr. 74, sections 2+3, bl. J3B, Sector 3, Bucharest; https://portal.onrc.ro/

10.Online certificates can be issued using the InfoCert service, which can be accessed via the portal https://portal.norc.ro/ Electronic signatures and timestamps are required for all documents provided through this service. Watermarks (graphic marks in the page’s background) and bar codes are examples of the security features included. Sample certificates issued by this service can be found at https://portal.onrc.ro/ONRCPortalWeb/appmanager/myONRC/signup?p=infoCert.