Summary of the document to be served (Form 92)

When a NSW document is sent for service in another country under the Hague Service Convention, the application to the Registrar under Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW) r 11A.4 must include a summary of the document to be served, in the approved form (r 11A.4(2)(c)). Form 92 is that summary, made under the fourth paragraph of Article 5 of the Convention. It identifies the addressee, carries a standard warning that the enclosed document is of a legal nature and may affect their rights, points them to legal aid (including Legal Aid NSW), and summarises the nature and purpose of the document and the proceedings, the amount in dispute where relevant, when and where to enter an appearance, the court, any judgment date and the time limits.

When you need it

• You are applying for service of a NSW document in a Hague Convention country using the request in Form 91.
• The person to be served needs a short explanation of what they are receiving and what they must do.
• You are serving originating process, a judgment or another document under UCPR Part 11A.

1. 1

   Identity and address of the addressee

   Give the full name and overseas address of the person to be served.

2. 2

   Forwarding authority and parties

   Enter the name and address of the forwarding authority (the court's Registrar) and the particulars of the parties to the proceedings.

3. 3

   The judicial document

   Describe the nature and purpose of the document (for example a statement of claim starting proceedings), and the nature and purpose of the proceedings, including the amount in dispute where relevant.

4. 4

   Dates and time limits

   State the date and place for entering an appearance, the court where the proceedings are pending or judgment was given, the date of any judgment, and the time limits stated in the document. Keep the summary accurate and consistent with the document itself.

• Lodge the summary with the Registrar as part of the r 11A.4 application, together with the draft request (Form 91), the document to be served and any translation.
• The Department of Communities and Justice checks the application, including any certified translation into the language of the destination country, and sends it to the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department for transmission.
• The applicant's lawyer on the record, or an unrepresented applicant, must undertake to be personally liable for the costs of service abroad (UCPR r 11A.4(3)) and pay them within 28 days of the Registrar's notice (r 11A.7).

• Write the summary in plain terms; the recipient may not read English well and may rely on it, or on its translation, to understand the document.
• Check whether the destination country requires the summary to be translated as well as the main document.
• Make the time limits match what the document and the rules actually allow, especially the time to file an appearance.