How to Serve Divorce Papers in Massachusetts

If you filed a contested 1B divorce in Massachusetts, you must formally serve the complaint on your spouse. This is not a formality you can skip — without valid service of process, the court cannot proceed with your case. And you cannot do it yourself. Here is how the process actually works.

You Cannot Hand-Deliver the Papers

Massachusetts law is explicit: the plaintiff is legally barred from personally serving divorce papers on the defendant. Service must be performed by an authorized third party. Handing the papers to your spouse yourself — even in front of witnesses — is not valid service.

Standard Service: Sheriff or Constable

After you file your 1B complaint, the court Registry processes the paperwork and issues a Domestic Relations Summons, which is mailed to you. Once you receive it, you need to arrange service.

Step 1: Contact a deputy sheriff or licensed constable in the county where your spouse lives or works. Fees vary by county but typically run $50 to $100, depending on travel distance.

Step 2: Provide them with the original summons and a copy of the complaint. The officer must serve the papers directly to your spouse "in hand" — meaning physical, personal delivery, not leaving them on a doorstep or with a family member.

Step 3: After service, the officer completes the "Return of Service" on the reverse side of the original summons, documenting when, where, and how the papers were delivered.

Step 4: File the completed Return of Service with the court Registry immediately. This proves that your spouse has been properly notified, and the 20-day response clock begins running from the date of service.

Acceptance of Service

If your spouse is cooperative enough to accept the papers voluntarily — just not cooperative enough for a joint 1A petition — they can sign a notarized Acceptance of Service. This eliminates the need for a sheriff and saves the service fee.

The signed acceptance must be filed with the court to start the response deadline.

When You Cannot Find Your Spouse

If you have made a diligent effort to locate your spouse and cannot find them, the court can authorize alternative service. This requires:

Step 1: File a Motion for Service by Alternate Means and Affidavit of Diligent Search (Form CJP 31). Your affidavit must detail every effort you made — contacting relatives, checking with the last known employer, requesting RMV records, verifying post office forwarding information.

Step 2: If the judge approves, the court issues an Order for Service by Publication and Mailing. You then have exactly 30 days to execute a two-part process:

1. Certified mail: Send the Summons by Publication and Mailing plus a copy of the complaint to your spouse's last known address via registered or certified mail, return receipt requested.
2. Newspaper publication: Deliver the summons to the legal notice department of the specific newspaper named in the court order. The notice must be published once per week for three consecutive weeks (or as the court directs).

Step 3: File proof of alternative service — the postal return receipt card (or the returned unopened envelope), a certified copy of the newspaper page with the dated publication, and the signed Return of Service from the court order.

Service by publication adds 4 to 8 weeks to your timeline and costs an additional $100 to $300 for the newspaper fees. If you have an approved Affidavit of Indigency and checked the publication fee box, those costs may be waived.

What Happens After Service

Once your spouse is served, two clocks start:

• 20-day response deadline: Your spouse has 20 days to file an Answer (Form CJD 201) with the court and serve a copy on you
• Six-month hearing floor: A 1B hearing cannot take place sooner than six months from the filing date

If your spouse does not respond within 20 days, the case can proceed toward a default judgment — but you still must wait for the six-month period to pass.

The Massachusetts Divorce Filing Process Guide includes a service of process checklist with step-by-step instructions for standard service, acceptance of service, and the alternative service process.

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