US · rules
W.D.N.C. LCvR 4.3
Waiver of Service Upon Current and Former North Carolina Department of Public Safety Employees in Civil Rights Actions Filed by North Carolina State Prisoners
(a) Waiver of Service of Complaint and Summons. When the Court allows any
portion of a state prisoner’s civil rights case to proceed past initial review under 28 U.S.C. § 1915,
the Clerk of Court shall prepare and file requests for waiver of service for all remaining defendants
who are current or former employees of the North Carolina Department of Public Safety
(“NCDPS”) and transmit electronic copies of the requests for waiver of service and the Complaint
to an e-mail inbox designated by the NCDPS. By 5:00 p.m. the following business day, an NCDPS
employee shall acknowledge receipt of the transmission by a return e-mail.
(b) Response to Requests for Waiver by the NCDPS. The NCDPS shall have sixty
(60) days from the filing of the request for waiver of service to accept or refuse service of process
upon the NCDPS employee. The NCDPS must undertake a good-faith effort to further identify
the named or intended defendants where needed and to procure defendants’ signatures on the
waivers of service.
(c) Filing of the Waiver of Service. When the NCDPS has obtained a defendant’s
waiver of service, the NCDPS or the North Carolina Attorney General must file the waiver with
the Court, under seal if necessary.
(1) Time to Answer or Otherwise Respond Where Waiver Obtained and Filed.
Any defendant for whom a waiver of service has been filed shall have sixty (60) days from the
date of the filing of the waiver to answer or otherwise respond to the Complaint.
(2) Procedure Where Waiver Not Obtained and Filed. Where the NCDPS
cannot procure a defendant’s waiver of service for any reason, such as when a defendant is no
longer an NCDPS employee, within the time provided by LCvR 4.3(b), the NCDPS or the North
Carolina Attorney General must file a response that either provides the Court with the full name
and last known address of the defendant, or informs the Court that no such address is available and
describes the NCDPS’s efforts to obtain the information. The NCDPS or the Attorney General may
provide the information under seal if required by state or federal privacy laws, and the Court will disclose
the information only to those engaged in providing service of process.
History
Advisory Committee Notes This Rule is a joint effort between this district and the North Carolina Attorney General and mirrors similar provisions in the Eastern District of North Carolina. It is designed to streamline service of process on current and former state employees in prisoner litigation, resulting in substantial savings to the taxpayer in U.S. Marshal Service fees and more rapid disposition of cases.
Provenance
- Source
- www.ncwd.uscourts.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-18
- Edition
- fed-district-2026-09-19
- Content hash
5c0d2af6a3d694b3c978558a5a5299ff292a61462f3e8e1c4c9458f2530b4926
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