Louisiana Revised Statutes 13:5107 – Service of citation and process
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 13:5107
- Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- person: includes a body of persons, whether incorporated or not. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 1:10
- Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
- political subdivision: means :
(1) Any parish, municipality, special district, school board, sheriff, public board, institution, department, commission, district, corporation, agency, authority, or an agency or subdivision of any of these, and other public or governmental body of any kind which is not a state agency. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 13:5102
- Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
- state agency: means any board, commission, department, agency, special district, authority, or other entity of the state and, as used in Louisiana Revised Statutes 13:5102
- suit: means civil actions as defined in Code of Civil Procedure Art. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 13:5102
A.(1) In all suits filed against the state of Louisiana or a state agency, citation and service may be obtained by citation and service on the attorney general of Louisiana, or on any employee in his office above the age of sixteen years, or any other proper officer or person, depending upon the identity of the named defendant and in accordance with the laws of this state, and on the department, board, commission, or agency head or person, depending upon the identity of the named defendant and in accordance with the laws of this state, and on the department, board, commission, or agency head or person, depending upon the identity of the named defendant and the identity of the named board, commission, department, agency, or officer through which or through whom suit is to be filed against.
(2) Service shall be requested upon the attorney general within ninety days of filing suit. This shall be sufficient to comply with the requirements of Subsection D of this Section and also Code of Civil Procedure Article 1201(C). However, the duty of the defendant served through the attorney general to answer the suit or file other responsive pleadings does not commence to run until the additional service required upon the department, board, commission, or agency head has been made.
B. In all suits filed against a political subdivision of the state, or any of its departments, offices, boards, commissions, agencies or instrumentalities, citation and service may be obtained on any proper agent or agents designated by the local governing authority and in accordance with the laws of the state provided that the authority has filed notice of the designation of agent for service of process with and paid a fee of ten dollars to the secretary of state, who shall maintain such information with the information on agents for service of process for corporations. If no agent or agents are designated for service of process, as shown by the lack of such designation in the records of the secretary of state, citation and service may be obtained on the district attorney, parish attorney, city attorney, or any other proper officer or person, depending upon the identity of the named defendant and in accordance with the laws of the state, and on the department, board, commission, or agency head or person, depending upon the identity of the named defendant and the identity of the named board, commission, department, agency, or officer through which or through whom suit is to be filed against.
C. In all suits in which title to lands or waterbottoms under the jurisdiction of the state land office is or may be at issue, and in all possessory actions, boundary disputes, trespass actions, actions involving alleged acquisitive prescription of immovable property, declaratory judgments, injunctions, and concursus proceedings involving such lands or waterbottoms, citation and service of all pleadings also shall be made on the register of the state land office. In all suits in which property rights, mineral rights, or authorities under the jurisdiction of the State Mineral and Energy Board may also be at issue, citation and service of all pleadings shall also be made on the secretary of the Department of Energy and Natural Resources.
D.(1) In all suits in which the state, a state agency, or political subdivision, or any officer or employee thereof is named as a party, service of citation shall be requested within ninety days of the commencement of the action or the filing of a supplemental or amended petition which initially names the state, a state agency, or political subdivision or any officer or employee thereof as a party. This requirement may be expressly waived by the defendant in such action by any written waiver. If not waived, a request for service of citation upon the defendant shall be considered timely if requested on the defendant within the time period provided by this Section, notwithstanding insufficient or erroneous service.
(2) If service is not requested by the party filing the action within the period required in Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, the action shall be dismissed without prejudice, after contradictory motion as provided in Code of Civil Procedure Article 1672(C), as to the state, state agency, or political subdivision, or any officer or employee thereof, upon whom service was not requested within the period required by Paragraph (1) of this Subsection.
(3) When the state, a state agency, or a political subdivision, or any officer or employee thereof, is dismissed as a party pursuant to this Section, the filing of the action, even as against other defendants, shall not interrupt or suspend the running of prescription as to the state, state agency, or political subdivision, or any officer or employee thereof; however, the effect of interruption of prescription as to other persons shall continue.
Acts 1975, No. 434, §1. Acts 1983, No. 586, §1; Acts 1985, No. 861, §1, eff. July 23, 1985; Acts 1996, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 63, §1, eff. May 9, 1996; Acts 1997, No. 518, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1998; Acts 2010, No. 55, §1; Acts 2012, No. 770, §1, eff. June 12, 2012; Acts 2014, No. 379, §1, eff. May 30, 2014; Acts 2018, No. 242, §1; Acts 2023, No. 150, §3, eff. Jan. 10, 2024.