Art. 1237.Service On Individual In Multiple Capacities

A single person can show up in a lawsuit wearing more than one legal hat — sued as an individual and, separately, as a tutor, or as a corporate officer and as a representative of another entity. Without Article 1237, a plaintiff might need to arrange separate service for each capacity, even though the same person answers the door each time.

Article 1237 avoids that duplication. One act of personal service on the individual covers every capacity in which they've been named, as long as it's clear — from the pleadings themselves or from the instructions given for service — which capacities are being served. That clarity requirement protects the person served from confusion about what, precisely, they've been served for.

The rule applies to personal service on the individual; it doesn't change how any other party or capacity in the case has to be served. If a lawsuit names the individual alongside an entity that individual represents, the entity may still need its own separate service under the rules in Chapter 3, even though the individual's own multiple capacities are covered by one delivery.