asked the Minister for Justice how soon he will take steps to abolish the requirement that civil bills be served only by civil bill officers.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Service of Civil Bills.
29.
I assume that the Deputy's reference to civil bill officers is intended as a reference to the summons servers who have, since 1926, replaced the former civil bill officers.
Section 7 of the Courts Act, 1964, provides for the service of circuit court and district court documents by registered post in areas where there are no summons servers. No new appointments as summons server have been made since then, and the present position is that the number of summons servers has fallen from 402 to 219, and that registered post operates already in about half the country. This method of service will be extended according as summons servers cease to hold office in any area.