A. Service is made on a person who is incarcerated in a jail or detention facility through personal service on the warden or his designee for that shift. The warden or his designee shall in turn make personal service on the person incarcerated. B. When requested by the petitioner or mover, proof of service may be made by filing in the record the affidavit of the person serving the citation and pleadings on the person who is incarcerated. C. Personal service on the person incarcerated as required by Paragraph A of this Article shall be made promptly, but in no event shall it be made later than ten days after service upon the warden or his designee. If, for reasons beyond the control of the warden, such personal service cannot be accomplished by the tenth day, then on the next day or as soon as it is apparent that such personal service cannot be accomplished, the warden or his designee shall note the inability to serve on the citation or pleadings and return the citation or pleadings to the issuing court. D. Service as provided in Paragraph A of this Article shall be deemed to be accomplished on the date of personal service shown by the affidavit specified in Paragraph B of this Article, or if no such affidavit is timely received, nor a return by the warden or his designee in Paragraph C of this Article indicating a lack of personal service, then service is deemed to be accomplished ten days after service upon the warden or his designee under Paragraph A of this Article.
Art. 1235.1.Service On Incarcerated Person
Book II. Ordinary Proceedings · Title II. Citation and Service of Process · Chapter 2. Service On Persons · Last amended 2004 · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 1235.1 requires service on an incarcerated person to go first through personal service on the warden or the warden's shift designee, who must then personally serve the incarcerated person within ten days, with service deemed complete on the date of actual personal delivery or, absent a timely affidavit or return, ten days after service on the warden.
Full Text of Art. 1235.1
Amendment History
Acts 1991, No. 46, §1; Acts 2004, No. 744, §1.
Plain-English Summary
Serving someone held in jail or a detention facility raises a problem ordinary personal service doesn't: process servers generally can't walk into a facility and hand papers to an inmate directly. Article 1235.1 solves that with a two-step relay. The officer first makes personal service on the warden, or whoever the warden has designated to accept service for that shift. The warden or designee then has to personally serve the incarcerated person.
The Code sets a firm outer limit on the second step: the warden must complete personal service on the incarcerated person within ten days of being served. If circumstances beyond the warden's control make that impossible, the warden has to note the failure on the citation or pleadings and return them to the court as soon as the problem becomes apparent, rather than letting the deadline pass silently.
When service happened matters for calculating deadlines that run from service. Article 1235.1 fixes that date in one of two ways: if an affidavit proving personal service on the incarcerated person is filed, service is deemed complete on the date that affidavit shows. If no such affidavit arrives in time, and the warden hasn't returned the papers showing a failure to serve, the law deems service complete automatically ten days after the warden was first served — giving certainty even when the paperwork trail is incomplete.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is an incarcerated person served with citation in Louisiana?
Through a two-step process: the officer first serves the warden or the warden's shift designee, who must then personally serve the incarcerated person within ten days.
What happens if the warden can't complete service within ten days?
If the delay is due to reasons beyond the warden's control, the warden must note the inability to serve on the citation or pleadings and return them to the court as soon as that becomes apparent.
When is service on an incarcerated person considered complete?
On the date shown in a filed affidavit proving personal service, or, if no timely affidavit or return is filed, automatically ten days after the warden was served.
Who can accept service on behalf of an incarcerated person?
The warden of the facility, or the person the warden has designated to accept service for that shift; the incarcerated person must still be personally served afterward.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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