Form 7: Certificate of Service
Form 7 records proof that court documents were served. It describes who served them, what was delivered, how delivery happened and when it occurred.
Form 7 is proof of service, not permission to use a different method of service. Record the actual delivery details and attach the served document when filing proof under Rule 183; check the specific form and rule for when filing is required.
What Form 7 proves
Service means giving documents to a party using a method allowed by the Provincial Court Family Rules. Form 7 helps the court check that service took place. It does not make an improper method of service valid. Check the service rule for the exact document before delivering it.
How to complete Form 7
- Identify the existing court file, registry, parties and the person who actually served the documents.
- Specify exactly which documents were delivered, including forms and attached materials. Keep a copy of the complete package.
- Record the date, time and allowed method of delivery accurately. Include location or address details where the form requests them.
- Have the person who performed the service complete and sign the certificate as required by the form. Do not certify service you did not perform.
- When filing Form 7 to prove service under Rule 183, attach a copy of the document served. Follow any rule-specific instruction about when the certificate must be filed.
Personal service is not the same as ordinary service
Rule 177 requires personal service by an adult who is not a party for certain documents, including Form 3 applications and protection-order applications. Other documents may generally use ordinary service under Rule 176, such as an address for service or a valid email address for service, where the rules permit it. An application served on someone without an address for service may itself require personal service.
When do you file the certificate?
Rule 183 allows service to be proved by filing Form 7 with a copy of the served document. A specific example: Rule 27(3) requires the applicant to file the certificate if no reply is filed within 30 days after serving the original Form 3 application. Other procedures have their own proof-of-service triggers; check the rule that applies to your papers.
Documents needing a different proof form
Under Rule 183(2), a summons or subpoena may be proved using Form 48 (Affidavit of Personal Service); proof relating to a protection order may require Form 49. Do not automatically use Form 7 for either situation.
Worked example
An adult who is not a party personally delivers the application and required accompanying documents to the respondent. That adult completes Form 7 with the details. The applicant keeps the completed certificate and the copies of the served documents ready for filing under the relevant rules.
Common mistake
Signing a certificate for someone else’s delivery, saying “served by email” where personal service was required, or omitting the copy of the served document when filing proof under Rule 183.