Convention of 15 November 1965 on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters

General Information

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What is it about?

The 1965 Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters was adopted under the auspices of the Hague Conference. It creates means to ensure that the judicial and extrajudicial documents to be served abroad are brought to the notice of the addressee in sufficient time. For that purpose the Convention improves the organization of mutual judicial assistance. It simplifies and expedites the procedure in codifying service of process by international registered mail and by agent and providing for service of process by a Central Authority. Each Member State has to designate a Central Authority that is responsible for service requests from other Member States and has to proceed in conformity with the provisions of the present Convention. The annexes to the Convention provide forms for the uniform handling of service requests and summaries of the documents to be served.

Why is it relevant?

By determining the proper institutions to address service requests, the process is streamlined and dealt with in a timely more efficient manner.

Additional Information

The present Convention, along with the 1970 Convention on the Taking of Evidence Abroad in Civil or Commercial Matters and the 1980 Convention on International Access to Justice, covers all the main aspects relating to international cooperation in civil and commercial proceedings, as covered by the 1905 and 1954 Conventions Relating to Civil Procedure, which the Conventions of 1965, 1970 and 1980 were intended to replace.

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