Service of an originating process, like a statement of claim, or
other court documents is, in general, governed by the Rules of Civil Procedure. The
rules prescribe what court documents must be served personally, or
if personal service cannot be made, how service can be affected by
an alternative to personal service. In circumstances where a party
has difficulty serving court documents either personally or by an
alternative to personal service, an order can be obtained for
substituted service or validating service of a court document.
Some statutes also prescribe for the service or delivery of
documents. In defamation law, provincial statutes may prescribe
that before an action for libel can be commenced, a plaintiff must
deliver a notice of libel to the defendant. These kinds of
provisions typically apply to media defendants.
