Rule 2.020.Certificate of Service
Current through August 1, 2026 · Last verified September 12, 2026
Full Text of Rule 2.020
Plain-English Summary
A certificate of service tells the court and the other side how and where service happened. This rule fixes the detail that certificate has to carry, and the detail changes with the method used. Where the court's eFiling system served the opposing party under UTCR 21.100, the certificate states that service was accomplished at the party's email address as recorded in the eFiling system on the date of service. That phrasing matters: the address that counts is the one the system held that day, not the one you have in your contacts.
Three other methods each have their own identifier. Service by facsimile under ORCP 9 F calls for the telephone number at which the party was served. Service by email under ORCP 9 G calls for the email address. Service by any other means calls for the physical or postal address, whichever applies. The thread running through all four is the same: a reader should be able to see exactly where the document went.
Section (2) adds a requirement for service of a summons or other civil process by someone who is not a sheriff or deputy sheriff. That certificate must give the name, telephone number, and address of the person who served it. One caution on sources: ORCP 9 F and ORCP 9 G belong to the Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure, a separate body of rules from the UTCR. Those rules govern when a method of service is available; this rule governs what you then write down.
Frequently Asked Questions
What has to go in a certificate of service in Oregon circuit court?
The address or number where each opposing party was served, matched to the method you used: the party's email address recorded in the eFiling system for court eService, the telephone number for fax service, the email address for email service, and the physical or postal address for anything else.
What do I write if the court's eFiling system served the other party?
State that service was accomplished at the party's email address as recorded on the date of service in the eFiling system. The rule ties the certificate to the system's own record of that address, which is why it is worth checking the record rather than reciting an address from memory.
What if I served by email or by fax?
For email service under ORCP 9 G, give the email address at which the party was served. For facsimile service under ORCP 9 F, give the telephone number at which the party was served. Those two ORCP provisions are Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure and control whether the method was available to you in the first place.
Does a private process server have to be identified?
Yes. When a summons or other civil process is served by anyone other than a sheriff or deputy sheriff, the certificate of service must include that person's name, telephone number, and address.
Is this the same certificate that goes on a proposed order?
No. A proposed order or judgment carries its own dated and signed certificate under UTCR 5.100, describing how service was made and why the document is ready for judicial signature.
They can travel together, though. UTCR 5.100 allows that certificate to be combined with any certificate of service another statute or rule requires.