Antigua and Barbuda Process Server

Overview

Process Server in Antigua and Barbuda: How Service of Process Works

Antigua and Barbuda has been bound by the Hague Service Convention since the UK extended it in the 1980s, with Antigua and Barbuda separately declaring itself bound following independence, generally dated to 1985. The Registrar of the Supreme Court serves as the Central Authority. Notably, Antigua and Barbuda also has a separate bilateral treaty with the United States covering judicial cooperation, under which the U.S. Attorney General and Antigua and Barbuda's Attorney General (or designee) serve as direct counterpart Central Authorities — a second, parallel framework alongside the Hague Convention itself.

Who serves process

Who Can Serve Legal Documents in Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda has a common-law system, and service there follows its own procedure code, applied by the courts in Saint John's.

Published guidance for Antigua and Barbuda is limited, so practical details for Saint John's are confirmed case by case. Antigua and Barbuda's courts form part of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court system. English is used in Antigua and Barbuda's courts, from Saint John's to Barbuda & Redonda, so U.S. papers can usually be served without translation.

For defendants in Saint John's or elsewhere in Antigua and Barbuda, the usual starting point is a claim form or writ of summons with the statement of claim; orders, notices and enforcement papers follow later in a case. Addresses range from Saint John's to Barbuda & Redonda.

Treaties

Hague Service Convention and Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda is a party to the Hague Service Convention, so documents can be sent to its Central Authority, which arranges service and returns a Certificate of Service. We check its declarations on postal and direct service before choosing a method.

Antigua and Barbuda is not a party to the Hague Evidence Convention, so requests for witness testimony or documents go through letters rogatory.