New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:6-611 – Service of Process
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(a) Signed consent to service of process. A consent to service of process required by this chapter must be signed and filed in the form required by the secretary of state. A consent appointing the secretary of state the person‘s agent for service of process in a noncriminal action or proceeding against the person, or the person’s successor, or personal representative under this chapter or an order issued by the secretary of state under this chapter after the consent is filed, has the same force and validity as if the service were made personally on the person filing the consent. A person that has filed a consent complying with this subsection in connection with a previous application for registration or notice filing need not file an additional consent.
(b) Conduct constituting appointment of agent for service. If a person, including a nonresident of this state, engages in an act, practice, or course of business prohibited or made actionable by this chapter or an order issued by the secretary of state under this chapter and the person has not filed a consent to service of process under subsection (a), that act, practice, or course of business constitutes the appointment of the secretary of state as the person’s agent for service of process in a noncriminal action or proceeding against the person, the person’s successor, or personal representative.
(c) Procedure for service of process. Service under subsection (a) or (b) may be made by providing a copy of the process to the office of the secretary of state, but it is not effective unless:
(1) the plaintiff, which may be the secretary of state, promptly sends notice of the service and a copy of the process, return receipt requested, to the defendant or respondent at the address set forth in the consent to service of process or, if a consent to service of process has not been filed, at the last known address, or takes other reasonable steps to give notice; and
(2) the plaintiff files an affidavit of compliance with this subsection in the action or proceeding on or before the return day of the process, if any, or within the time that the court, or the secretary of state, in a proceeding before the secretary of state, allows.
(d) Use in administrative proceedings. Service as provided in subsection (c) may be used in a proceeding before the secretary of state or by the secretary of state in a civil action in which the secretary of state is the moving party.
(e) Provision of opportunity to defend. If the process is served under subsection (c), the court, or the secretary of state in a proceeding before the secretary of state, shall order continuances as are necessary or appropriate to afford the defendant or respondent reasonable opportunity to defend.
(b) Conduct constituting appointment of agent for service. If a person, including a nonresident of this state, engages in an act, practice, or course of business prohibited or made actionable by this chapter or an order issued by the secretary of state under this chapter and the person has not filed a consent to service of process under subsection (a), that act, practice, or course of business constitutes the appointment of the secretary of state as the person’s agent for service of process in a noncriminal action or proceeding against the person, the person’s successor, or personal representative.
Terms Used In New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:6-611
- Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
- Agent: means an individual, other than a broker-dealer, who represents a broker-dealer in effecting or attempting to effect purchases or sales of securities or represents an issuer in effecting or attempting to effect purchases or sales of the issuer's securities. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:1-102
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Filing: means the receipt under this chapter of a record by the secretary of state. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:1-102
- including: shall be construed as introducing a non-exhaustive list. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:1-102
- Order: means an order issued pursuant to this chapter. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:1-102
- Person: means an individual; corporation; business trust; estate; trust; partnership; limited liability company; association; joint venture; government; governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality; public corporation; or any other legal or commercial entity. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:1-102
- Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
- Secretary of state: means the New Hampshire secretary of state or his or her designee. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:1-102
- Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
- State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 421-B:1-102
(c) Procedure for service of process. Service under subsection (a) or (b) may be made by providing a copy of the process to the office of the secretary of state, but it is not effective unless:
(1) the plaintiff, which may be the secretary of state, promptly sends notice of the service and a copy of the process, return receipt requested, to the defendant or respondent at the address set forth in the consent to service of process or, if a consent to service of process has not been filed, at the last known address, or takes other reasonable steps to give notice; and
(2) the plaintiff files an affidavit of compliance with this subsection in the action or proceeding on or before the return day of the process, if any, or within the time that the court, or the secretary of state, in a proceeding before the secretary of state, allows.
(d) Use in administrative proceedings. Service as provided in subsection (c) may be used in a proceeding before the secretary of state or by the secretary of state in a civil action in which the secretary of state is the moving party.
(e) Provision of opportunity to defend. If the process is served under subsection (c), the court, or the secretary of state in a proceeding before the secretary of state, shall order continuances as are necessary or appropriate to afford the defendant or respondent reasonable opportunity to defend.