R.I. Super. Ct. R. Civ. P. 4

(a) Summons: Form. The

summons shall bear the Signature of the clerk, be under the seal or watermark of the

court (which shall be generated by the CMS), identify the court and the parties, be

directed to the defendant, and state the name and address of the plaintiff's attorney

or state the name and address of the self-represented litigant except where prohibited

by federal or state law. The summons shall also state the time within which the

defendant must appear and defend and shall notify the defendant that failure to do

so will result in a judgment by default against the defendant for the relief demanded

in the complaint. The court may allow a summons to be amended.

(b) Summons: Issuance. The summons, as provided in subdivision (a) of this

rule, shall be issued in the following manner:

(1) For attorneys and self-represented litigants who are Registered Users, a

summons shall be generated by the court and attached to the case following the

acceptance of the complaint and all other required documents by the court.

Registered Users can retrieve the summons through the Public Access Portal;

(2) For incarcerated individuals, a summons shall be generated electronically by

the court and mailed to the individual upon the acceptance of the complaint and all

other required documents by the court; and

(3) For attorneys who are granted a waiver pursuant to Art. X, Rule 3(c) of the

Rhode Island Supreme Court Rules Governing Electronic Filing and self-represented litigants who do not elect to electronically file pursuant to Art. X, Rule

3(b):

(A) A summons shall be generated electronically by the court and handed to the

attorney or self-represented litigant at the time of filing the complaint and all other

required documents at the clerk's office;

(B) If the complaint and all other required documents are mailed to the court, a

summons shall be generated electronically by the court and mailed to the attorney or

self-represented litigant if a self-addressed envelope is included; or

(C) If the complaint and all other required documents are mailed to the court, a

summons shall be generated electronically by the court and the attorney or self-represented litigant may obtain the summons at the clerk's office.

The plaintiff's attorney or a self-represented litigant shall deliver to the person who

is to make service the original summons upon which to make his or her return of

service and a copy of the summons, complaint, Language Assistance Notice, and all

other required documents for service upon the defendant. Additional summons may

be issued against any defendant.

(c) By Whom Served. Service of all process shall be made by a duly authorized

officer in accordance with Title 9, Chapter 5 (Writs, Summons, and Process) of the

Rhode Island General Laws or by any person who is not a party and who is at least

eighteen (18) years of age.

(d) Waiver of Service; Duty to Save Costs of Service; Request to Waive.

(1) A defendant who waives service of a summons does not thereby waive any

objection to the venue or to the jurisdiction of the court over the person of the

defendant.

(2) An individual or corporation that is subject to service under subdivision

(e)(1), (e)(3), or (f), and that receives notice of an action in the manner provided in

this paragraph has a duty to avoid unnecessary costs of serving the summons. To

avoid costs, the plaintiff may notify such a defendant of the commencement of the

action and request that the defendant waive service of a summons. The notice and

request:

(A) Shall be in writing and shall be addressed directly to the defendant, if an

individual, or else to an officer or managing or general agent (or other agent

authorized by appointment or law to receive service of process) of a defendant

subject to service under the laws of this state;

(B) Shall be dispatched through the EFS, first-class mail, or other reliable means;

(C) Shall be accompanied by a copy of the complaint, Language Assistance

Notice, and all other required documents and shall identify the court in which it has

been filed;

(D) Shall inform the defendant of the consequences of compliance and of a failure

to comply with the request;

(E) Shall set forth the date on which the request is sent;

(F) Shall allow the defendant a reasonable time to return the waiver to the

plaintiff, which shall be at least thirty (30) days from the date on which the request

is sent, or sixty (60) days from that date if the defendant is addressed outside the

United States; and

(G) If needed, shall provide the defendant with an extra copy of the notice and

request, as well as a prepaid means of compliance in writing.

The most current version of the notice and request is located on the Judiciary's

website at www.courts.ri.gov under the heading of Public Resources, Forms. If a

defendant located within the United States fails to comply with a request for waiver

made by a plaintiff located within the United States, the court shall impose the costs

subsequently incurred in effecting service on the defendant unless good cause for

the failure is shown.

(3) A defendant that, before being served with process, timely returns a waiver

so requested is not required to serve an answer to the complaint until sixty (60) days

after the date on which the request for waiver of service was sent, or ninety (90) days

after that date if the defendant was addressed outside the United States.

(4) When the plaintiff files a waiver of service with the court, the action shall

proceed, except as provided in paragraph (3), as if a summons, complaint, Language

Assistance Notice, and all other required documents had been served at the time of

filing the waiver, and no proof of service shall be required.

(5) The costs to be imposed on a defendant under paragraph (2) for failure to

comply with a request to waive service of a summons shall include the costs

subsequently incurred in effecting service under subdivision (e), (f), or (h), together

with the costs, including a reasonable attorney's fee, of any motion required to collect

the costs of service.

(e) Summons: Personal Service. The summons, complaint, Language

Assistance Notice, and all other required documents shall be served together. The

plaintiff shall furnish the person making service with such copies as are necessary.

Service shall be made as follows:

(1) Upon an individual from whom a waiver has not been obtained and filed,

other than an incompetent person, by delivering a copy of the summons, complaint,

Language Assistance Notice, and all other required documents to the individual

personally or by leaving copies thereof at the individual's dwelling house or usual

place of abode with some person of suitable age and discretion then residing therein

or by delivering a copy of the summons, complaint, Language Assistance Notice,

and all other required documents to an agent authorized by appointment or by law

to receive service of process, provided that if the agent is one designated by statute

to receive service, such further notice as the statute requires shall be given.

(2) Upon a person for whom a guardian or conservator has been appointed by

serving copies of the summons, complaint, Language Assistance Notice, and all

other required documents upon such guardian or conservator and upon the

incompetent person in the manner provided in paragraph (1) of this subdivision.

(3) Upon a public corporation, body, or authority or a private corporation,

domestic or foreign, from which a waiver of service has not been obtained and filed,

by delivering a copy of the summons, complaint, Language Assistance Notice, and

all other required documents to an officer, director, manager, a managing or general

agent, or by leaving a copy of the summons, complaint, Language Assistance Notice,

and all other required documents at an office of the corporation with a person

employed therein, or by delivering a copy of the summons, complaint, Language

Assistance Notice, and all other required documents to an agent authorized by

appointment or by law to receive service of process, provided that if the agent is one

designated by statute to receive service, such further notice as the statute requires

shall be given.

(4) Upon the state by delivering a copy of the summons, complaint, Language

Assistance Notice, and all other required documents to the attorney general or an

assistant attorney general.

(f) Service Outside State Within the United States; Personal Jurisdiction.

When an individual or a foreign corporation is subject to the jurisdiction of the courts

of the state, service of process may be made outside the state as follows:

(1) Upon an individual by delivery of a copy of the summons, complaint,

Language Assistance Notice, and all other required documents to the individual

personally by any disinterested person, or by mailing a copy of the summons,

complaint, and Language Assistance Notice to the individual by registered or

certified mail, return receipt requested, or by express or overnight carrier with a

signed receipt of delivery, or by any other method ordered by the court to give such

individual notice of the action and sufficient time to prepare any defense thereto.

(2) Upon a foreign corporation by delivery of a copy of the summons, complaint,

Language Assistance Notice, and all other required documents by any disinterested

person to the president, secretary, or treasurer of such corporation or to any agent or

attorney for service of process designated by the corporation in the state of

incorporation, or by mailing a copy of the summons, complaint, Language

Assistance Notice, and all other required documents to any such officer or agent or

to the corporation at its business address designated in the state of incorporation by

registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, or by any other method ordered

by the court to give such corporation notice of the action and sufficient time to

prepare any defense thereto.

(g) Service Upon Individuals in a Foreign Country. Unless otherwise provided

by state or federal law, service upon an individual from whom a waiver has not been

obtained and filed, other than an infant or an incompetent person, may be effected

in a place not within the United States:

(1) By any internationally agreed means reasonably calculated to give notice,

such as those means authorized by the Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of

Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents;

(2) If there is no internationally agreed means of service or the applicable

international agreement allows other means of service, provided that service is

reasonably calculated to give notice:

(A) In the manner prescribed by the law of the foreign country for service in that

country in an action in any of its courts of general jurisdiction;

(B) As directed by the foreign authority in response to a letter interrogatory or

letter of request; or

(C) Unless prohibited by the law of the foreign country, by:

(i) Delivery to the individual personally of a copy of the summons, complaint,

and Language Assistance Notice; or

(ii) Any form of mail requiring a signed receipt, to be addressed and dispatched

by the clerk of the court to the party to be served; or

(3) By other means not prohibited by international agreement as may be directed

by the court.

(h) Service Outside the State in Certain Actions. Where service cannot with

due diligence be made personally within the state, service of the summons,

complaint, Language Assistance Notice, and all other required documents may be

made outside the state in the manner provided by subdivisions (f) and (g) of this rule

in the following cases:

(1) Where an interest of a person in property or credits within the state has been

brought before the court by attachment or trustee process; or

(2) Where a pleading demands a judgment that a person be excluded from a

vested or contingent interest in or lien upon specific real or personal property within

the state; or that such an interest or lien of any party be enforced, regulated, defined,

determined, or limited.

(i) Service by Publication. Whenever in an action described in subdivision (h)

of this rule complete service cannot with due diligence be made by another

prescribed method, the court shall order service by publication of a notice of the

action in one or more newspapers in such form and for such length of time as the

court shall direct. If a statute expressly provides for service of process by publication,

publication shall be in the form and manner provided by such statute.

(j) Proof of Service. If service is not waived, the person serving the process shall

make proof of service thereof on the original process or a paper attached thereto for

that purpose, and shall forthwith return it to the plaintiff's attorney or a self-represented litigant. If service is made other than by a duly authorized officer in

accordance with Title 9, Chapter 5 (Writs, Summons, and Process) of the Rhode

Island General Laws, that person shall make affidavit thereof. A copy of any return

receipt received in connection therewith shall be filed by the plaintiff's attorney or a

self-represented litigant when returned. The plaintiff's attorney or a self-represented

litigant shall, within the time during which the person served must respond to the

process, file the proof of service with the court. Failure to make proof of service does

not affect the validity of the service.

(k) Amendment. At any time in its discretion and upon such terms as it deems

just, the court may allow any process or proof of service thereof to be amended,

unless it clearly appears that material prejudice would result to the substantial rights

of the party against whom the process issued.

(l) Summons: Time Limit for Service. If service of the summons, complaint,

Language Assistance Notice, and all other required documents is not made upon a

defendant within one hundred and twenty (120) days after the commencement of the

action the court upon motion or on its own initiative after notice to the plaintiff, shall

dismiss the action without prejudice as to that defendant or direct that service be

effected within a specified time; provided that if the plaintiff shows good cause for

the failure, the court shall extend the time for service for an appropriate period. This

subdivision does not apply to service in a foreign country pursuant to subdivision

(g).

(m) Attachment and Trustee Process.

(1) Availability of Remedies. In connection with the commencement of any action

under these rules, attachment, including trustee process, shall be available to the

extent and in the manner provided by law.

(2) Writ of Attachment: Form. The writ of attachment shall:

(A) Bear the Signature of the clerk, be under the seal or watermark of the court,

contain the name of the court, the names and residences of the parties and the trustee,

if any, and the date of the commencement of the action; and

(B) Be directed to a duly authorized officer in accordance with Title 9, Chapter 5

(Writs, Summons, and Process) of the Rhode Island General Laws and command

them to attach the goods or estate of the defendant to the value of the amount of the

plaintiff's demand for judgment, together with a reasonable allowance for interest

and costs, and to make due return of their doings thereon.

The most current version of the writ of attachment is located on the Judiciary's

website at www.courts.ri.gov under the heading of Public Resources, Forms.

(3) Writ of Attachment: Issuance. The writ of attachment shall be filled out by

the plaintiff's attorney or a self-represented litigant as provided in paragraph (2) of

this subdivision, and shall be submitted to the court with a motion for its issuance.

The motion shall be granted only upon a showing that there is a probability of a

judgment being rendered in favor of the plaintiff and that there is a need for

furnishing the plaintiff security in the amount sought for satisfaction of such

judgment, together with interest and costs. A motion hereunder shall not be granted

ex parte. Security may be required in connection with issuance of any writ of

attachment. A surety upon a bond or undertaking hereunder shall be subject to the

provisions of Rule 65(c).

(4) Writ of Attachment: Service. The plaintiff's attorney or a self-represented

litigant shall deliver to the officer making service a copy of the proposed writ of

attachment together with a copy of the motion for its issuance and the notice of

hearing thereof. When the summons, complaint, and Language Assistance Notice

are served upon the defendant as provided in subdivisions (d) through (i) of this rule,

the defendant shall also be served with a copy of the proposed writ of attachment

and of the motion for its issuance with the notice of hearing thereof. An attachment

made after service of the summons, complaint, and Language Assistance Notice

shall be made as provided in paragraph (6) of this subdivision.

(5) Attachment on Counterclaim, Cross-claim, or Third-party Complaint.

Attachment may be utilized by a party bringing a counterclaim, a cross-claim, or a

third-party complaint in the same manner as upon an original claim.

(6) Subsequent Attachment. After service of the summons, complaint, and

Language Assistance Notice upon the defendant, attachment shall be available to the

extent and in the manner provided by law, shall follow the form prescribed in

paragraph (2) of this subdivision, and shall be issued in accordance with paragraph

(3) of this subdivision. All papers shall be served upon the defendant in the manner

provided for service of process under subdivisions (d) through (i) of this rule unless

the defendant has appeared in the action, in which case service shall be made as

provided in Rule 5(b).

(7) Proof of Service. Upon service of a writ of attachment and copy thereof, the

person making the service shall make the proof of service as provided in subdivision

(j) of this rule.

(n) Arrest.

(1) Availability of Remedy. In connection with the commencement of any action

under these rules, a writ of arrest shall be available to the extent and in the manner

provided by law.

(2) Form and Service. The writ of arrest shall be obtained and filled out in the

same manner as a writ of attachment, shall be accompanied by such affidavit as may

be required by law, and shall be submitted to the court with a motion for its issuance.

An order of issuance shall be indorsed on the writ by the court. Service of such writ

shall be accompanied by service upon the defendant of a copy of the summons,

complaint, Language Assistance Notice, and all other required documents, and proof

of service shall be made in the same manner as proof of service on a writ of

attachment. The most current version of the writ of arrest is located on the Judiciary's

website at www.courts.ri.gov under the heading of Public Resources, Forms.

(3) Subsequent Writ of Arrest. After service of the summons, complaint,

Language Assistance Notice, and all other required documents upon the defendant a

writ of arrest shall be available to the extent and in the manner provided by law and

shall be issued and served as provided in paragraph (2) of this subdivision.

(4) Ne Exeat. An order of arrest may be entered when the plaintiff has demanded

and would be entitled to a judgment requiring the performance of an act, the neglect

or refusal to perform which would be punishable by the court as a contempt, and

where the defendant is not a resident of the state or is about to depart therefrom, by

reason of which nonresidence or departure there is danger that such judgment or

order will be rendered ineffectual.