EBC (No Designation) 19 February 2011

No contact order with wife and kid, how to serve her summons

Hi,

I was in USA on H1 visa and got married in 2004 in India. Wife joined me in 2005 but within 5-6 months, she felt uncomfortable with the lifestyle of USA. So she left for India after 5 months of stay and at that time, she was 3 months pregnant. Kid was born in India in 2006 and she started begging that I should bring her and the kid back. Given the fact that kid was not at fault, I got both of them into the US again in 2008.

Once again, in 2 months in 2008 itself, issues started creeping up and she left the house with kid and went to Police and alleged domestic violence and child abuse (as in, I hit the child daily). Seems she realized her mistake and withdrew the DV case and requested to come home, despite the child abuse charges still pending and court order saying we cannot stay together. Due to the court order restriction, I couldnt allow her to come home, and that pissed her off and she filed child custody case and pursued the child abuse charges (all this in USA).

Since I loved her and the child, I didnt want to harm her, hence didnt testify in the court and she spoke all lies to show I was the most evil person on earth. Judge ordered full custody of child to mother and put in a 3 year no contact order with the mother and the child.

Am back in India now for good as I lost my jobs and the lawyers there drained me completely. Now with the marriage done in 2004 and with a no contact US court order in hand for 3 years (got in 2008 and expiring in 2012), I want to put an end to this marriage. In the meantime, she has been again bugging me to get her back for which am hesitant now as to what would be her next step if she gets angry again.

Now the million dollar question is, in India, I have spoken to several lawyers but none have been able to guide me as to how to to serve her the summons as I dont know where she stays. Note that as per no contact court order, am not supposed to know where she stays as she told court she was afraid of me. I know her parents address in India but lawyers say summons should be served to her and not her parents.

I have been reading the blogs and have seen that there are many good people who give out valuable suggestions. So can anyone guide me over here. Your help would be very much appreciated.

Thanks.

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6 Replies

(Guest)

IS ur wife in India or US

Tajobsindia (Senior Partner ) 20 February 2011

@ Author

1. File divorce if that is what you want and seek Dasti Service before 14 days plus 48 hrs. (both added).
2. Call her same day just after getting your suit for divorce admitted (number by the Court) and say yes to her coming back and offer to get her and child picked up.
3. Take from Nazarath Branch a Dasti Server in plain cloths with you to her pick up point. He will serve the Service of Divorce upon her and take her signature. He will ask you to make a statement - one line that service was done at such and such person at such and such time at such and such place. Then he will return the Service Form effective upon back to your suit file Court with his Oath statement reiterating what you said and will add one more line from his side stating it to be true.
4. It is obvious that your purpose to serve divorce suit Service is thus served but her purpose to reunite will get defeated and now prepare for any civil and or criminal counter attack she will do on you.
5. There is no other way to further you passion of call for effective Service other than a divine intervention read with some detective work to know her 'ordinary residence" to follow normal process of Service.

BTW, if her parents receive the Service then it is also called as a effective service as the Service is in her name and the person receiving is bound down by Court to produce that person on whose behalf he/she has received the court service and or it is assumed that such and such suit in Court knowledge that person has but is avoiding tendering his/her appearnace which are all good matter for adversial proceedings agains that person!

Follow whichever path you feel comfortable from above answers.

1 Like

Tajobsindia (Senior Partner ) 20 February 2011

@ Author

Addendum which I should have reasoned in above reply however adding them here basis of my above reply;

1. You married in India as per Indian Family Laws
2. Your wife is Indian national.
3. You are Indian national.
4. Your child was born in India and is a Indian national.
5. Fate read with fame brought you to US shores some 6 years back. The H1 Visa and your work there are now finished and you sailed back to Indian shores for good as you yourself write I your briefs.
6. However, there are pending cases in USA with a 'no contact with wife for next 3 yrs. order'. I doubt you flying back to USA to attend those pending case(s). I further doubt your wife flying to USA to appear in her case(s). You further say you are broke with hourly charges of US Attorneys so where all these as in your briefs inference too, none other than process flow in hand in my first above reply?

If all above are correct reading down your briefs then above reply is valid read with my other post of this week in same Forum on foreign divorce decree vs. Indian Law a very short primer I stated, read it before replying that I did not read some USA Court Order on 'no contact with wife" which you are taken to heart living in India as if USA and India have extradition treaty on matrimonial offences - none man and moreover India is not signatory to Child Rights Convention to extradite a child of Americans abducted to India which is also not the case in hand.

1 Like

pavan kumar k (Legal Services) 20 February 2011

I think there are many suppressed facts in this issue.

There are many legal procedures with alternatives available and all Lawyers univeresally know this.

I didnot agree with you that no one guided you.

If you problem is genuine, approach any advocate for right advice. (Even a final year Indian Law student can guide you effectively.)

........ all the best.

EBC (No Designation) 20 February 2011

some answers to the questions put by people:

a) am a US Citizen but have relocated back to Mumbai, India for good as there is no job prospect over there in US.

b) my wife is a permanent resident in USA (green card holder) but us an Indian Citizen and the child though born in India is now a US citizen and resides with the mother in USA.

c) as for calling her to some pickup point, I cant do that as there is a no contact order in USA with her and the kid and am not even supposed to know where she lives. Hence doing a Dasti Service may not be a good option as it would violate the no contact order.

(Guest)

1. If the stay away order was issued by US court, then making contact with her thro an attorney or process server DOES NOT violate terms of restraining order.

2. Technically, you can make a motion to the court to vacate the restraining order. If you need help, pm me offline. All court records in US are public and searchable. I can search your case based on your first name, last name and county.Once I find your case, the court application ( like DomainWeb) can show the entire case filing online. In the case filing, her last known address would be there and you can get a attorney to serve her papers at the last known address. If she does not turn up, you have a fair chance of getting the stay away order vacated in full.