|
Guam Rules of Civil Procedure
Because the rules of civil procedure
may change from time to time, please
check the
Guam Courts website for updated and complete rules of civil procedure in Guam.
Please visit the
Guam Compiler of Laws website
for all Court Rules in Guam.
Rules of Civil Procedure in Guam:
Rule 4. Process.
(a) Summons Issuance.
CivilProcedure.info - Glaeser
Enterprises, LLC
Upon the filing of the complaint the
clerk shall forthwith issue a
summons and deliver the summons to
the plaintiff or the plaintiff's
attorney, who shall be responsible
for prompt service of the summons
and a copy of the complaint. Upon
request of the plaintiff separate or
additional summons shall issue
against any defendants.
(b) Form of Summons.
The summons shall be signed by the
clerk, be under the seal of the
court, contain the name of the court
and the names of the parties, be
directed to the defendant, state the
name and address of the plaintiff's
attorney, if any, otherwise the
plaintiff's address, and the time
within which these rules require the
defendant to appear and defend, and
shall notify the defendant that in
case of the defendant's failure to
do so judgment by default will be
entered against the defendant for
the relief demanded in the
complaint.
CivilProcedure.info - Glaeser
Enterprises, LLC
(c) Service.
(1) Process, other than a
subpoena or a summons and
complaint, shall be served by a
marshal or deputy marshal of the
Superior Court, or by a person
specially appointed for that
purpose.
(2)
(A) A summons and complaint
shall, except as provided in
subparagraphs (B) and (C) or
this paragraph, be served by
any person who is not a
party and is not less than
18 years of age.
(B) A summons and complaint
shall, at the request of the
party seeking service or
such party's attorney, be
served by a marshal or
deputy marshal, of the
Superior Court, or by a
person specially appointed
by the court for that
purpose, only --
(i) on behalf of a party
authorized to proceed in
forma pauperis;
(ii) on behalf of the
government of Guam or an
officer or agency of the
government of Guam; or
(iii) pursuant to an
order issued by the
court stating that a
Superior Court marshal
or deputy Superior Court
marshal, or a person
specially appointed for
that purpose, is
required to serve the
summons and complaint in
order that service be
properly effected in
that particular action.
(C) A summons and complaint
may be served upon a
defendant of any class
referred to in (1) or (3) of
subdivision (d) of this rule
--
(i) pursuant to these
Rules or any applicable
law of Guam.
(ii) [Omitted]
(D) [Omitted]
CivilProcedure.info -
Glaeser Enterprises, LLC
(E) [Omitted]
(3) The court shall freely make
special appointments to serve
summonses and complaints under
paragraph (2)(B) of this
subdivision of this rule and all
other process under paragraph
(1) of this subdivision of this
rule.
(d) Summons and Complaint: Person
to be Served.
The summons and complaint shall be
served together. The plaintiff shall
furnish the person making service
with such copies as are necessary.
Service shall be made as follows:
(1) Upon an individual other
than an infant or an incompetent
person, by delivering a copy of
the summons and of the complaint
to the individual personally, or
by leaving copies thereof at the
individual's dwelling house or
usual place of abode with some
person of suitable age and
discretion then residing
therein, or by delivering a copy
of the summons and of the
complaint to an agent authorized
by appointment or by law to
receive service of process.
(2) Upon an infant under the age
of 14 years, residing in Guam,
to such minor, personally, and
also to his father, mother, or
guardian, or if there be none in
Guam, then to any person having
the care or control of such
minor, or with whom he resides,
or in whose service he is
employed.
(2a) Upon a person who has been
judicially declared to be of
unsound mind, or incapable of
conducting his own affairs and
for whom a guardian has been
appointed, to such person, and
also to his guardian.
(3) Upon a domestic or foreign
corporation or upon a
partnership or other
unincorporated association which
is subject to suit under a
common name, by delivering a
copy of the summons and of the
complaint to an officer, a
managing or general agent, or to
any other agent authorized by
appointment or by law to receive
service of process and, if the
agent is one authorized by
statute to receive service and
the statute so requires, by also
mailing a copy to the defendant.
(3a) In addition, upon a foreign
corporation in accordance with
Guam law.
(4) Upon the government of Guam
by delivering a copy of the
summons and of the complaint to
the Attorney General of Guam,
and in any action attacking the
validity and order of an officer
or agency of the government of
Guam not made a party, by also
sending a copy of the summons
and of the complaint to such
officer or agency.
(5) Upon an officer or agency of
the government of Guam, by
serving the Attorney General and
by delivering a copy of the
summons and of the complaint to
such officer or agency. If the
agency is a corporation, the
copy shall be delivered as
provided in paragraph (3) of
this subdivision of this rule.
(e) Summons B Service Upon Party
Not Inhabitant of, or Found Within
Guam.
Whenever a statue or order of court
thereunder provides for service of a
summons, or of a notice, or of an
order in lieu of a summons upon a
party not an inhabitant of, found
within Guam, service shall be made
by publication in a newspaper of
general circulation for the
prescribed time and by mailing such
summons, notice or order to the last
known residence (or post office box)
of such party. Where a residence
address and a post office box are
know, service shall be made on both.
Publications shall be proved by
affidavit of an officer or agent of
the publisher, stating the dates of
publication with an attached copy of
the order as published. Service by
mail shall be accomplished by any
form of U.S. postal delivery that
provides for written proof of
mailing, written proof of delivery
and restricted delivery to the
addressee only. Mailing shall be
proved by affidavit establishing
that the address employed is the
most current mailing address known
for the party being served, that a
copy of the summons (notice or
order) and the complaint were
deposited with the U.S. Post Office,
properly addressed, and having
attached thereto the Postal receipts
reflecting a form of mailing
prescribed above.
(f) [Omitted]
(g) Summons -- Return.
The person serving the process shall
make proof of service thereof to the
court promptly and in any event
within the time during which the
person served must respond to the
process. If the process is made by a
person other than the marshal or his
deputy, he shall make affidavit
thereof. Failure to make proof of
service does not affect the validity
of the service.
(h) Summons - Amendment.
CivilProcedure.info - Glaeser
Enterprises, LLC
At any time in its discretion and
upon such terms as it deems just,
the court may allow any process or
proof of service thereof to be
amended, unless it clearly appears
that material prejudice would result
to the substantial rights of the
party against whom the process
issued.
SOURCE:
GRCP Rule 4; FRCP 1987 Amendments;
Guam Bar Rules Committee.
Rule 4(e) amended by Order of the
Supreme Court of Guam dated Nov. 20,
1997 and
Aeffective immediately@.
CROSS-REFERENCE: 7 GCA '21104
- Default. 1 GCA '717 - Notice, How
Given.
NOTE: The original Guam Rules
and the publication of the Rules
contained in the
Code of Civil Procedure (1970)
(Bohn, ed.) have the complete text
of the Federal rule.
It seems certain, therefore, that
this full text was adopted by the
Judicial Council in
1969. The late Judge Raker regarded
the omission of service upon the
person
individually as unintentional and
read this rule as if it contained
the full text, since
there is no apparent reason to omit
service on the defendant personally.
Federal Rule
4(d)(6) and 4(d)(7) were wholly and
intentionally omitted both in 1969
and in 1975.
COMMENT: 1. Committee
approved Rule 4(a) as amended in
FRCP 1987
amendments.
2. Subsection (b) -- Committee
approved 1987 FRCP amendments, but
excluded
final sentence thereof relating to
statutes of other jurisdictions.
This sentence is
inapplicable to Guam and could cause
confusion between these Rules and
the Code of
Civil Procedure.
3. Subsection (c) -- Committee
approved using FRCP 1987 amendments
except
(c)(2)(C)(ii) permitting service of
summons via ordinary mail and
providing sanctions
against a defendant for failure to
answer. Other parts of the Rule have
been changed to
show this omission. Commentators
have criticized this part of the
federal amendments.
The Committee believed that mail
service could cause undue problems,
considering
the state of our mails and impose
undue costs on a defendant.
4. Subsection (d) -- Committee
followed a combination of the 1987
FRCP and
Guam Rules.
(2) & (2a) -- Guam Rules followed in
order to refer to Guam laws and
practice with respect to incompetent
persons and persons having a
guardian.
(3a) -- Added an additional
reference to Guam law in order to
reflect CCP
417 and 418 (P.L. 18-17:45 & 46) -
Jurisdiction over non-resident
defendants.
Also see CCP 411 and 412, dealing
with service of summons on foreign
corporations and by publication.
(Enacted by P.L. 13-131:1 & 2).
(f) -- Omitted as having no
reference to Guam's situation.
(i) - Omitted. See Guam Rule 3(a)
and the Comment, above. Guam law
covers this subject.
(1998) Rule 4(e). This Rule 4(e) was
amended to provide clearly for
constitutional
service of process by mail and
publication. The prior rule was
declared invalid by
Superior Court Judge B.J. Cruz
following a period when other judges
had upheld the
Rule.
The word ATerritory@ replaced by
AGuam@ in accord with the of P.L.
24-89.
Rule 5. Service and Filing of
Pleadings and Other Papers.
(a) Service, When Required. Except
as otherwise provided in these
rules, every order required by its
terms to be served, every pleading
subsequent to the original
complaint, unless the court
otherwise orders
because of numerous defendants,
every written motion other than one
which
may be heard ex parte; and every
written notice, appearance, demand,
offer
of judgment, designation of record
on appeal, and similar papers shall
be
served on each of the parties. No
service need be made on parties in
default
for failure to appear, except that
pleadings asserting new or
additional
claims for relief against them shall
be served upon them in the manner
provided for service of summons in
Rule 4.
In an action brought by seizure of
property, in which no person need be
or is named as a defendant, any
service required to be made prior to
the
filing of an answer, claim or
appearance shall be made upon the
person
having custody or possession of the
property at the time of the seizure.
(b) Service - How Made. Whenever
under these rules service is
required or permitted to be made
upon a party represented by an
attorney,
the service shall be made upon the
attorney unless service upon the
party
himself is ordered by the court.
Service upon the attorney or upon a
party
shall be made by delivering a copy
to him or by mailing it to him at
his last
known address or, if no address is
known, by leaving it with the clerk
of the
court. Delivery of a copy within
this rule means: Handing it to the
attorney
or to the party; or leaving it at
his office with his clerk or other
person in
charge thereof; or, if there is no
one in charge, leaving it in a
conspicuous
place therein; or, if the office is
closed or the person to be served
has no
office, leaving it at his dwelling
house or usual place of abode with
some
person of suitable age and
discretion then residing therein.
Service by mail
is complete upon mailing.
(c) Service - Numerous Defendants.
In any action in which there are
unusually large numbers of
defendants, the court, upon motion
or of its own
initiative, may order that service
of the pleadings of the defendants
and
replies thereto need not be made as
between the defendants and that any
cross-claim, counterclaim, or matter
constituting an avoidance or
affirmative
defense contained therein shall be
deemed to be denied or avoided by
all other parties, and that the
filing of any such pleading and
service thereof
upon the plaintiff constitutes due
notice of it to the parties. A copy
of every
such order shall be served on the
parties in such manner and form as
the
court directs.
Rule 45. Subpoena.
(a) For Attendance of Witness;
Form; Issuance.
Every subpoena shall be issued by
the clerk under the seal of the
court, shall state the name of the
court and the title of the action,
and shall command each person to
whom it is directed to attend and
give testimony at a time and place
therein specified. The clerk shall
issue a subpoena, or a subpoena for
the production of documentary
evidence, signed and sealed but
otherwise in blank, to a party
requesting it, who shall fill it in
before service.
(b) For Production of Documentary
Evidence.
A subpoena may also command the
person to whom it is directed to
produce the books, papers,
documents, or tangible things
designated therein, but the court,
upon motion made promptly and in any
event at or before the time
specified in the subpoena for
compliance therewith, may (1) quash
or modify the subpoena if it is
unreasonable and oppressive or (2)
condition denial of the motion upon
the advancement by the person in
whose behalf the subpoena is issued
of the reasonable cost of producing
the books, papers, documents, or
tangible things.
(c) Service.
A subpoena may be served by the
marshal, or by a deputy marshal, or
by any other person who is
not a party and is not less than 18
years of age. Service of a subpoena
upon a person named therein shall be
made by delivering a copy thereof to
such person and by tendering to that
person the fees for one day's
attendance and the mileage allowed
by law. When the subpoena is issued
on behalf of the Government of Guam
or an officer or agency thereof,
fees and mileage need not be
tendered.
(d) Subpoena for Taking
Deposition: Place of Examination.
(1) Proof of service of a notice
to take a deposition as provided
in Rules 30(b) and 31 (a)
constitutes a sufficient
authorization for the issuance
by the clerk of the court of
subpoenas for the persons named
or described therein. Proof of
service may be made by filing
with the clerk of court a copy
of the notice together with a
statement of the date and manner
of service and of the names of
the persons served, certified by
the person who made service. The
subpoena may command the person
to whom it is directed to
produce and permit inspection
and copying of designated books,
papers, documents, or tangible
things which constitute or
contain matters within the scope
of the examination permitted by
Rule 26(b), but in that event
the subpoena will be subject to
the provisions of Rule 26(c) and
subdivision (b) of this rule.
The person to whom the subpoena
is directed may, within 10 days
after the service thereof or on
or before the time specified in
the subpoena for compliance if
such time is less than 10 days
after service, serve upon the
attorney designated in the
subpoena written objection to
inspection or copying of any or
all of the designated materials.
If objection is made, the party
serving the subpoena shall not
be entitled to inspect and copy
the materials except pursuant to
an order of the court from which
subpoena was issued. The party
serving the subpoena may, if
objection has been made, move
upon notice to the deponent for
an order at any time before or
during the taking of the
deposition.
(2) A person to whom a subpoena
for the taking of a deposition
is directed may be required to
attend at any place within the
territory of Guam or, if the
deposition is to be taken
outside of Guam, at any place
within 100 miles from the place
where that person resides, is
employed or transacts business
in person, or is served, or at
such other convenient place as
is fixed by an order of court.
(e) Subpoena for a Hearing or
Trial.
CivilProcedure.info - Glaeser
Enterprises, LLC
(1) At the request of any party
a subpoena for attendance at a
hearing or trial shall be issued
by the clerk of court. The
subpoena requiring the
attendance of a witness at a
hearing or trial may be served
at any place within Guam, or at
any place outside of Guam, but
no witness who is outside of
Guam may be compelled to attend
unless witness fees and
transportation are provided to
that witness and unless the
jurisdiction wherein the witness
is located permits compelled
attendance in such
circumstances.
(2) A subpoena directed to a
witness in a foreign country
shall issue under the
circumstances and in the manner
and be served as provided in
law.
(f) Contempt.
Failure by any person without
adequate excuse to obey a subpoena
served upon that person may be
deemed a contempt of the court from
which the subpoena issued.
SOURCE:
GRCP Rule 45. Includes all FRCP
amendments and new subsection (e).
Additions are from FRCP and were not
in former GRCP.
CROSS-REFERENCE: 6 GCA '7201
- 7209.
NOTE: The additions bring in
material from the Federal Rules
omitted from former
Guam Rules. These have to do with
serving subpoenas off-island. The
exact FRCP text
is not followed, because the laws
and powers of the Superior Court are
different from
the laws and powers of a U.S.
District Court.
CivilProcedure.info does not
warrant the accuracy of these rules of civil procedure or laws. The rules of civil procedure or laws listed on
CivilProcedure.info are only a
starting point for reference, and
are not meant to be legal advice or
a replacement for legal console.
Please consult a process server in
your area, county, or state if you
have any questions about process
service there.
Process Servers |
