Terms of Service

These terms govern all services provided by File & Serve Legal Services (“we”, “our”). By submitting a request, you agree to the terms below.

Scope of Service

• We operate as a professional process serving and filing agency. Document support is limited to printing and technical assembly of final client-supplied documents, administrative delivery and filing where accepted, authorized document collection, and factual records of our own process service. We do not select court forms, draft pleadings or motions, review legal sufficiency, provide legal advice or represent clients, and we are not a law firm or paralegal office. Court acceptance is not guaranteed.
• Basic service plans include documented attempts to serve at the address provided: Flat $85: 1 attempt in London/Sarnia included service area + Service Confirmation included Standard $125: up to 2 attempts in London/Sarnia included service area + Service Confirmation included Other cities beyond 25 km $85: 1 attempt + Service Confirmation included; applicable travel is extra
• Completion of a process serving plan includes Service Confirmation / Proof of Service prepared from our service record.
• Affidavit of Service — for service carried out by File & Serve only: Choose no affidavit add-on (Service Confirmation included), preparation ($25 per affidavit) plus independent commissioning ($25 per affidavit) for $50 + HST per affidavit, or commissioning only for $25 + HST per affidavit when you supply a complete, unsigned affidavit for the same File & Serve service. Preparation is limited to our actual server’s factual service record. Commissioning only does not include preparing or correcting your draft. No preparation-only or unrelated-document commissioning is offered through this checkout.
• The person who actually served the documents must review and swear or affirm the facts before a different authorized commissioner. Clients supply the applicable form and instructions. We do not provide legal advice, select legal strategy, or complete unrelated court forms. After our service, we arrange receipt of a client-supplied affidavit and the actual server checks its factual account. We do not review its legal sufficiency.
• Service timelines depend on access, availability of parties, building/security policies, and legal requirements. Rush options (e.g., 48h, 24h, immediate) are available at additional cost.
• You authorize us to coordinate filings, eService (where permitted), printing, and reasonable field diligence consistent with your instructions and the selected plan.

Court Runner & Routine Court Filing

• Dedicated Court Runner — $95 + travel + HST: One court file, one visit and up to 60 minutes of courthouse work and waiting. Available on its own or with a process-serving order. Local travel is included for a courthouse in London or Sarnia, or within 25 km of the nearest File & Serve office.
• Routine filing add-on — $50 + HST: One file, one local visit, up to 30 minutes of courthouse work and waiting, with a process-serving order on an available planned route. The $50 and $95 options cannot both be charged for the same task.
• Administrative scope only: Delivering or lodging final documents supplied by you where counter filing is accepted, collecting an already-ready record with the necessary authority, and administrative counter enquiries on your instructions. Printing and assembly are technical only and follow your instructions. We do not select forms, draft pleadings or motions, review legal sufficiency, give legal advice, make legal submissions, represent you at a hearing or guarantee court acceptance. Electronic filing requirements, office hours, access restrictions and court procedures may prevent an in-person task.
• Extra time: $20 + HST per additional 15-minute block started of courthouse work or waiting after the included time, only within the time limit you authorize. Extra time is separately itemized after attendance; unused authorized time is not charged and your card is not debited automatically. If more time is needed than authorized, we seek new instructions before continuing; completion cannot be guaranteed within a time limit.
• Time measurement: Included court time starts when we join the court-office queue or begin the instructed court-office task, whichever comes first, and ends when that attendance concludes. Local travel does not reduce the court-time allowance. Extra time of 1–15 minutes counts as one block; no unused authorized block is charged.
• Costs outside the attendance fee: Court fees, court copies, parking, courier and other expenses must be agreed in advance and itemized with applicable tax treatment. Our printing remains $0.50/page + HST. No court fee is assumed included in the service price.
• Automatic court travel: Outside-area Ontario court travel is calculated automatically at $0.85/km beyond 25 km from the nearest London or Sarnia office, once per dedicated court visit. It is itemized separately from any process-serving travel before payment. Outbound and return billable kilometres beyond the included 25 km zone are charged; no travel-time fee is added. This buys a separate dedicated court attendance when selected with process serving; the highest-address travel rule applies only to alternative service addresses for one recipient.
• Written quote before payment: Required for archived or not-yet-ready records and work expected to require multiple visits. The quote states the scope, visit allowance and approved expenses.
• Repeat visits: A visit needed because of our administrative error has no additional attendance fee. Court closures, missing client documents, unavailable records or other circumstances may require a new visit with a fee agreed before that visit; there is no automatic repeat-visit charge.
• Before dispatch: We review courthouse details, your file number or new-filing reference, requested task, document set, supplied deadline, collection authority where relevant, time limit and availability. Payment is not confirmation that a court will accept documents or release a record. If we cannot accept or arrange the requested Court Runner visit before dispatch, we refund its unperformed service fee and related HST. Existing accepted orders retain their agreed prices. Court Runner details.

Client Responsibilities

• You are responsible for the accuracy and legality of all documents and instructions you provide, including names, addresses, court details, and deadlines.
• If access is restricted (buzzers, concierge, security, gated entry) or the address is stale/incorrect, additional time and attempts may be required.
• If you require service at multiple addresses or on multiple parties, additional fees may apply.

Fees, Deposits & Refunds

• HST (13%) applies to services, add-ons and travel charges. Prices shown apply to new requests; existing accepted orders retain their agreed prices.
• Process-serving travel outside the included service area: no mileage charge applies inside London/Sarnia or within the first 25 km from the nearest File & Serve office. For destinations beyond 25 km, outbound and return billable kilometres beyond the included zone are billed at $0.85 per km + HST, based on server-calculated one-way driving distance from the nearest office.
• Additional attempts selected with the initial other-cities plan are $100 + HST each. Other add-ons (e.g., court filing, affidavit preparation and commissioning, rush service, extra parties, printing) are billed according to the pricing shown at the time of request.
• If a paid affidavit step cannot be performed, we refund the amount charged for that step, including its HST. Service-plan deposit terms below apply separately.
• Promotion codes: Enter an issued promotion code in the original request form and select Apply before payment. Each code states its percentage, eligible charges and validity dates; it may apply to the base service-plan charge or the eligible pre-tax order total. An accepted discount is deducted before HST. Review the verified total before paying. No discount is promised without an applicable, valid code.
• Later additional attempt: After all purchased attempts on any paid local or other-cities plan are exhausted without successful service, request one additional attempt for the same job at a selected address already included in the paid order, in that address’s recorded city. We verify that the purchased allowance is exhausted without successful service and confirm the same job, recipient and documents at an address already included in the paid order before issuing a link for one additional attempt at $100 + $13 HST = $113. Repeat mileage and printing are $0 for this approved same-job attempt. The office arranges scheduling; payment does not guarantee successful service. A new city or address not included in the paid order uses a new request with automatic plan and travel calculation. New recipients or documents also require a new verified job quotation rather than changing the original paid job. Additional-attempt instructions.
• Deposits are taken to mobilize the job and allocate resources. Once a job is dispatched or any field attempt is made, deposits become non-refundable and are applied to incurred costs.
• Where no attempt has begun, deposit refunds may be considered at our discretion, less any admin/processing fees.

Payment

• Payment is processed via our payment link (Square). Submission of documents in our intake system is unlocked only after payment confirmation.
• Outstanding balances must be paid before release of final deliverables, including Service Confirmation / Proof of Service and any requested commissioned Affidavit of Service, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Documents & Deliverables

• Provide your documents in full and legible form. If re-printing is required, printing fees may apply.
• Service Confirmation / Proof of Service is included upon completion of service attempts. An optional Affidavit of Service is limited to factual service information for service performed by File & Serve, under the preparation and commissioning options above. The actual server remains responsible for reviewing and swearing or affirming those facts before a different authorized commissioner.

Limitations

• We cannot guarantee that a party will be present or cooperative at a particular time or place. Our commitment is to make diligent, recorded attempts consistent with your plan.
• If a court or tribunal has unique filing/service rules, you must notify us in advance or provide directions. Additional fees/timelines may apply.

Privacy Policy

We treat client data with care and confidentiality.

• Confidentiality: Information and documents you provide are used only to perform the requested services and to comply with legal obligations.
• Access Control: Access to client data is limited to personnel who need it to fulfill your request.
• Retention: We retain records (e.g., service notes, Proof of Service records, affidavits, invoices) for a period consistent with operational and legal requirements, after which they are securely deleted or archived.
• Data Sharing: We do not sell or trade personal information. We may share information with courts, authorized agents, or payment processors to complete your service or as required by law.
• Security: Reasonable technical and administrative safeguards are used to protect your information. No system is perfectly secure; please avoid sending sensitive data by unsecured channels.
• Your Choices: You may request a copy or correction of your records. For privacy requests, contact us using the details below.

Service Scope & Legal Disclaimer

• Not a Law Firm / No Legal Advice: File & Serve Legal Services is not a law firm or paralegal service and does not provide legal advice, opinions, or representation. If you need legal guidance, consult a licensed lawyer or paralegal.
• Jurisdiction & Rules: You are responsible for ensuring the requested service method complies with the rules of the applicable court/tribunal and jurisdiction.
• Client Direction: We act on your instructions for locations, parties, and timelines. Inaccurate or incomplete instructions may affect outcomes and fees.

Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms & Policy from time to time. When updated, the effective date will be revised. Continued use of our services after changes indicates acceptance of the revised terms.

Contact

Questions about these terms or your privacy?

• Email: info@fileandserve.ca
• Website: www.fileandserve.ca