- Filing or service starts a Washington action
- Under CR 3(a) a civil action is commenced by serving a copy of the summons together with a copy of the complaint, as Rule 4 provides, or by filing a complaint. For a statute of limitations, RCW 4.16.170 treats the action as commenced when the complaint is filed or the summons is served, whichever occurs first, and RCW 4.28.020 gives the court jurisdiction from that commencement.
- CR 3(a); RCW 4.16.170; RCW 4.28.020
- Ninety days to serve after filing
- If the complaint is filed before anyone is served, RCW 4.16.170 requires the plaintiff to have one or more of the defendants served personally, or to commence service by publication, within ninety days from the date of filing. If that service is not made, the action is deemed not to have been commenced for purposes of tolling the statute of limitations.
- RCW 4.16.170
- Served first, filed within ninety days
- Washington lets a plaintiff serve before filing. When the action is commenced by service on one or more defendants or by publication, the summons and complaint must be filed within ninety days from the date of service; if they are not, the tolling effect is lost the same way.
- RCW 4.16.170
- A written demand to file
- Any other party may serve a written demand that the plaintiff file the action. The plaintiff then pays the filing fee and files the summons and complaint within 14 days after service of the demand, or the service is void; the CR 4 summons form tells the defendant the same thing in plain words.
- CR 3(a); CR 4 summons form
- Debt suits are filed before service
- CR 3(e) bars serving a debtor with a summons and complaint unless both have been filed with the court and bear the case number the court assigned.
- CR 3(e)
- Who may serve the summons
- Service of summons and process, other than by publication, is made by the sheriff of the county where service is made or the sheriff’s deputy, or by any person over 18 years of age who is competent to be a witness in the action, other than a party. Served 123 LLC arranges service through local process servers who meet that test.
- CR 4(c)
- Process servers who serve for a fee
- RCW 18.180.010 requires a person who serves legal process for a fee in Washington to be eighteen or older, a Washington resident, and registered as a process server with the auditor of the county where the server resides or has a principal place of business. The residency and registration requirements do not apply to, among others, a sheriff, deputy sheriff, marshal, constable or government employee acting in the course of employment, an attorney or the attorney’s employees who are not serving process on a fee basis, and a person who receives no fee or wage for serving process; the age requirement still applies. RCW 18.180.040 provides that a person otherwise entitled to collect the costs of service may not collect them unless the process server used is either required to register or exempt, though the costs may be collected if the server registers within forty-five days after serving the process. RCW 18.180.900 adds that nothing in the act modifies Superior Court Civil Rule 4.
- RCW 18.180.010, .040, .900
- Anywhere in Washington
- All process other than a subpoena may be served anywhere within the territorial limits of the state (CR 4(f)), so one summons reaches a defendant in any of the 39 counties.
- CR 4(f)
- Summons and complaint go together
- The summons must be signed and dated by the plaintiff or the plaintiff’s attorney, and CR 4(d)(1) has the summons and complaint served together. RCW 4.28.080 serves the summons by delivering a copy to the person the section names for the kind of defendant.
- CR 4(a)(1), (d)(1); RCW 4.28.080
- Personal and abode service
- For an individual, RCW 4.28.080(14) has the summons delivered to the defendant personally, or left at the house of the defendant's usual abode with some person of suitable age and discretion then resident there. Service in the modes the section provides is personal service.
- RCW 4.28.080(14)
- The usual mailing address route
- Where the defendant cannot with reasonable diligence be served at home or in hand, RCW 4.28.080(15) allows leaving a copy at the defendant's usual mailing address with a person of suitable age and discretion who is a resident, proprietor or agent there, and then mailing a copy first class, postage prepaid, to that address. Service is complete on the tenth day after the mailing, and a post office box or the person's place of employment does not count as a usual mailing address.
- RCW 4.28.080(15)
- Corporations, LLCs and partnerships with an agent
- A represented entity, which RCW 23.95.400 defines as a domestic entity or a registered foreign entity, is served under RCW 23.95.450 by serving its registered agent (RCW 4.28.080(8)). "Entity" in that chapter means a business or nonprofit corporation, a limited liability partnership, a limited partnership, a limited liability company, or a general or limited cooperative association. A foreign entity that has withdrawn its Washington registration may still be served under RCW 23.95.450 on a cause of action that arose while it was registered (RCW 23.95.530(3), .540(2)). Service on a registered agent must be in a tangible medium, but a commercial registered agent may be served in other forms, and subject to such requirements, as the agent has stated in its listing under RCW 23.95.420 that it will accept.
- RCW 4.28.080(8); RCW 23.95.400, .105(6), .420, .450(1), (5), .530(3), .540(2)
- When the registered agent is gone
- If the entity has no registered agent, or the agent cannot with reasonable diligence be served, it may be served by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, or a similar commercial delivery service, at the principal office shown in its most recent annual report. Service is effective on the earliest of receipt, the date shown on the return receipt if executed by the entity, or five days after deposit if correctly addressed and with sufficient postage or payment. Only if the entity cannot be served through the agent or by that mail may a copy be handed to the individual in charge of any regular place of business or activity of the entity, if that individual is not a plaintiff; the secretary of state is the entity's agent if none of those routes works.
- RCW 23.95.450(2)-(4)
- Counties, cities and districts
- A county is served through the county auditor or, during normal office hours, the deputy auditor (a charter county may also designate an agent); a town or city through the mayor or city manager, or, during normal office hours, the mayor’s or city manager’s designated agent or the city clerk; a school or fire district through the superintendent or commissioner, or in the office with an assistant superintendent, deputy commissioner or business manager during normal business hours.
- RCW 4.28.080(1)-(3)
- The State of Washington
- In an action against the state, the summons and complaint are served on the attorney general, or left in the office of the attorney general with an assistant attorney general.
- RCW 4.92.020
- Minors and persons with a guardian
- A minor under fourteen is served personally and also through a parent or guardian, or if none is within the state, a person with care or control of the minor, with whom the minor lives, or who employs the minor. A person for whom a guardian has been appointed for any cause is served through that guardian. Apart from the cases RCW 4.08.050 excepts, a minor defendant appears by guardian, and the court appoints one if the minor has none: on the minor{R}s application if fourteen or older and made within thirty days after service of the summons, or, if the minor is under fourteen or does not apply, on the application of any other party or a relative or friend of the minor.
- RCW 4.28.080(9), (10); RCW 4.08.050
- Incapacitated parties
- An incapacitated person appears by guardian; if there is none, or the court finds the guardian improper, the court names a guardian ad litem. When the incapacitated person is the defendant, a relative or friend applies within thirty days after service of summons if served in Washington, or within sixty days after the first publication or the service out of the state; if no application is made in that time, any party may apply.
- RCW 4.08.060
- Defendants outside Washington
- Personal service of a summons may be made on any party outside the state. On a Washington citizen or resident, or a person who has submitted to the state's jurisdiction, it has the effect of personal service within the state; otherwise it has the effect of service by publication. The long-arm statute reaches a person who transacts any business or commits a tortious act in Washington, among other acts. Only causes of action arising from the acts the statute lists may be asserted when jurisdiction rests on it, and out-of-state personal service is valid only when an affidavit is filed that service cannot be made within the state.
- RCW 4.28.180; RCW 4.28.185(1)-(4), (6)
- Service by publication
- When the defendant cannot be found within the state, the plaintiff files an affidavit saying so, stating that a copy of the summons and complaint was mailed to the defendant's residence (unless it is unknown) and naming one of the RCW 4.28.100 cases, such as a resident who has departed the state with intent to defraud creditors or to avoid service of a summons, or keeps concealed in it with like intent, a nonregistered foreign entity with property in Washington, or a Washington corporation whose officers cannot be found. Publication runs once a week for six consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the action is brought, only after the complaint is filed, and service is complete when the publication time ends. A nonregistered foreign entity is one not registered to do business in Washington. A defendant not served personally may, on application and sufficient cause shown, be allowed to defend at any time before judgment and, except in an action for divorce, after judgment within one year after its rendition, on such terms as may be just.
- RCW 4.28.100; RCW 4.28.110; RCW 4.28.200; RCW 23.95.105
- Mail in place of publication
- Where publication would be justified, the serving party may file an affidavit showing that mail is just as likely to give actual notice, and the court may order service by mail by a non-party over 18 who is competent to be a witness. Two copies go out, postage prepaid, to the party's last known address or any other address the court determines to be appropriate, one by ordinary first class mail and one by a form of mail requiring a signed receipt, in envelopes bearing the sender's return address. The summons states the date it was deposited in the mail and gives 90 days from that date to appear and answer, and the service has the same jurisdictional effect as publication.
- CR 4(d)(4)
- Motorists served through the secretary of state
- RCW 46.64.040 makes the secretary of state the agent for summons against a nonresident growing out of any accident, collision or liability while operating a vehicle on Washington public highways, or while the nonresident’s vehicle is operated there with the nonresident’s consent. It also reaches a Washington resident who, while operating a motor vehicle on those highways, is involved in an accident, collision or liability and then, at any time within the following three years, cannot after a due and diligent search be found in the state. Service is made by leaving with the secretary of state a copy for the record and one for each address to be served, with the fee the secretary of state sets by rule, sending notice and a copy by registered mail with return receipt requested to the defendant’s last known address, and appending the plaintiff’s affidavit of compliance. That affidavit states that personal service was attempted with due diligence at every known address, lists the addresses tried, or says that no address is known. Personal service outside the state under the out-of-state service law relieves the plaintiff of the registered mailing.
- RCW 46.64.040
- Defendants in another country
- When a statute or rule authorizes service on a party not an inhabitant of or found within the state, and service is to be made in a foreign country, CR 4(i) also allows service in the manner the foreign country's law prescribes, as directed in response to a letter rogatory, by personal delivery, by any form of mail requiring a signed receipt, under any applicable treaty or convention, by diplomatic or consular officers when the United States Department of State authorizes, or as the court directs by order. Service by personal delivery or as the court directs may be made by any person who is not a party and is not less than 21 years of age, or who is designated by order of the court or by the foreign court; the method must comply with applicable treaties and be reasonably calculated to give actual notice. Proof may be made under CR 4(g), by the law of the foreign country, by a method in an applicable treaty or convention, or by court order, and proof of service by mail requiring a signed receipt includes a receipt signed by the addressee or other evidence of delivery satisfactory to the court.
- CR 4(i)
- Time to answer
- The summons requires a defense within 20 days after service, exclusive of the day of service. CR 12(a) gives 60 days instead when the summons is published (from first publication), served personally out of state under RCW 4.28.180 and 4.28.185 or on the secretary of state under RCW 46.64.040, or served in a jail, detention facility or prison facility.
- CR 4(a)(2); CR 12(a); RCW 4.28.180
- Proof from a process server
- A sheriff or deputy proves service by a return endorsed on or attached to the summons; any other server gives an affidavit of service endorsed on or attached to it. The return or affidavit must state the time, place and manner of service, and under RCW 18.180.030 a process server required to register shows the registration number and county of registration on any proof of service the server signs; an employee of such a server shows the employer's registration number and the employer's county of registration. Under RCW 5.50.010 an affidavit is a sworn declaration, one given under oath in a signed record; an unsworn declaration is signed and given under penalty of perjury instead of oath.
- CR 4(g)(1), (2), (7); RCW 18.180.030; RCW 5.50.010
- Other kinds of proof
- Publication is proved by the affidavit of the publisher, supervisor, principal clerk or business manager of the newspaper with a printed copy of the summons as published; court-ordered mail service by the serving party's affidavit stating to whom and when the envelopes were mailed; and acceptance by the written acceptance or admission of the defendant, the defendant's agent or attorney, which must state the time, place and manner of service.
- CR 4(g)(3)-(5)
- Proof of service made out of state
- For personal service outside Washington, CR 4(g)(6) calls for the affidavit of the person making service, sworn before a notary public with a seal attached, or before a clerk of a court of record. Separately, RCW 5.50.030 gives an unsworn declaration under the chapter the same effect as a sworn declaration where Washington law requires or permits one, except for a deposition, an oath of office, an oath required before a specified official other than a notary public, or a declaration to be recorded under Title 64 or 65 RCW. The declaration must be in substantially the RCW 5.50.050 form: "I declare under penalty of perjury under the law of Washington that the foregoing is true and correct," then the day, month and year it is signed and where (city or other location, and state or country), the printed name and the signature.
- CR 4(g)(6); RCW 5.50.030, .050
- Missing or defective affidavits
- Under CR 4(g)(7), failure to make proof of service does not affect the validity of the service. A defective summons or affidavit can be fixed by an amendment under CR 4(h), which the court may allow unless it clearly appears that the amendment would cause material prejudice to the substantial rights of the party served.
- CR 4(g)(7), (h)
- Objections to service
- Insufficiency of process and insufficiency of service of process are CR 12(b)(4) and (5) defenses. They are waived if left out of a CR 12 motion, or if not raised by motion or in the responsive pleading or an amendment permitted as a matter of course under CR 15(a), and a voluntary appearance does not by itself give them up.
- CR 12(b), (h)(1); CR 4(d)(5)
- Counting the days
- CR 6(a) applies to periods set by the rules, local rules, a court order or any applicable statute: the day of the triggering event is not counted, and the last day is, unless it is a Saturday, a Sunday or a legal holiday under RCW 1.16.050, when the period runs to the next day that is none of those. RCW 1.12.040 counts statutory periods the same way. A period under 7 days skips intermediate weekends and holidays, and 3 days are added when a notice or paper is served by mail.
- CR 6(a), (e); RCW 1.12.040
- More time from the court
- When these rules, a notice given under them or a court order require or allow an act within a specified time, the court, for cause shown and in its discretion, may enlarge the period on a request made before it expires, and after it expires, on motion, may permit the act where the failure was the result of excusable neglect; it may not extend the time for any action under CR 50(b), 52(b), 59(b), 59(d) or 60(b).
- CR 6(b)
- Sundays and legal holidays
- RCW 1.16.050 lists Sunday first among the state legal holidays. RCW 2.28.100 keeps courts closed on a legal holiday but excepts the issuance of any process or subpoena not requiring immediate judicial or court action, and the service of it.
- RCW 1.16.050(1)(a); RCW 2.28.100(5)
- Washington legal holidays
- New Year’s Day; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (third Monday of January); Presidents’ Day (third Monday of February); Memorial Day (last Monday of May); Juneteenth (June 19); Independence Day (July 4); Labor Day (first Monday in September); Veterans Day (November 11); Thanksgiving Day (fourth Thursday in November); Native American Heritage Day (the Friday after it); and Christmas Day. A holiday falling on a Sunday is observed the following Monday, and one falling on a Saturday the preceding Friday.
- RCW 1.16.050(1), (5)
- Serving a Washington subpoena
- Any suitable person over 18 may serve a subpoena by giving the named person a copy, or by leaving a copy at the person’s dwelling house or usual place of abode with someone of suitable age and discretion then residing there. When the server is not an officer authorized to serve process, proof of service is by affidavit. An attorney of record may issue and sign a subpoena, subject to RCW 5.56.010.
- CR 45(a)(4), (b)(1); CR 4(c)
- Records-only subpoenas: notice first
- A subpoena for documents, things or an inspection, with no command to appear, is served on each party under CR 5(b) no fewer than five days before it is served on the person named, unless the parties agree or the court orders otherwise for good cause. Objections are due within 14 days after service, or before the compliance time if that is sooner.
- CR 45(b)(2), (c)(2)(B)
- Where a witness must appear for a deposition, production or inspection
- A subpoena to attend a deposition, produce documents or permit inspection may require a Washington resident to attend only in the county where the person resides, is employed or transacts business in person, or at a place fixed by court order. A nonresident may be required to attend only in the county where served, within 40 miles of the place of service, or at a place fixed by court order.
- CR 45(e)(2)
- Witness fees at service
- Witnesses in courts of record receive the same compensation per day and per mile as jurors in superior court, and witnesses in any other court the district court juror rate. A civil witness who demands it of the server at the time of service is entitled to one day’s attendance fee and mileage. RCW 5.56.010 lets any person be compelled to attend as a witness in a civil action or proceeding, except as RCW 7.115.020 provides (no Washington court, clerk or attorney may issue a subpoena or other process in connection with a proceeding in another state related to protected health care services that are lawful in Washington), but no witness can be compelled to attend unless the fees for one day’s attendance and travel are paid or tendered, provided that a witness residing in the same county as the court, or within twenty miles of it, demands them at the time of service. For a witness residing outside the county or more than twenty miles away, the party applies ex parte and the court fixes an allowance for meals, lodging and travel, which is endorsed on the subpoena and tendered at service.
- RCW 2.40.010, .020; RCW 5.56.010; RCW 7.115.020(2)(c)
- The CR 45 proof of service
- The CR 45 subpoena form ends with a proof of service block for the date and place served, the person served, the manner of service and the server's printed name and title, followed by a Declaration of Server under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of Washington, the date and place it is executed, the signature of the server and the address of the server.
- CR 45 form
- Out-of-state subpoenas (UIDDA)
- Washington adopted the Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act at RCW 5.51. A party submits the foreign subpoena to a clerk of court in the county where discovery is to be conducted, with an attestation under penalty of perjury on whether it seeks material tied to protected health care services lawful in Washington; the request is not an appearance. The clerk promptly issues a Washington subpoena that incorporates the foreign terms and carries the names, addresses and telephone numbers of all counsel of record and of any unrepresented party. If the attestation shows the subpoena touches protected health care services, the clerk does not issue it and presents the request to the court, which may issue it only for an out-of-state action founded in tort, contract or statute brought by the person or the person's authorized legal representative for damages suffered by the person (or a loss of consortium), or a contract action brought by a party with a contractual relationship with the person, where a similar claim would exist under Washington law. The issued subpoena is served under CR 45, and motions for a protective order or to quash, modify or enforce go to the court in the discovery county.
- RCW 5.51.020-.050, .900
Rules current as of October 2026, from the official texts: the Washington Superior Court Civil Rules as published by the Washington Courts, CR 3, 4, 6, 12 and 45; and the Revised Code of Washington as published by the Washington State Legislature, RCW chapters 1.12, 1.16, 2.28, 2.40, 4.08, 4.16, 4.28, 4.92, 5.50, 5.51, 5.56, 7.115, 18.180, 23.95 and 46.64. RCW 4.28.080 reflects the 2025 amendments (2025 c 40), which moved business entity service to RCW 23.95.450.
