Section 18Part 3 — General Provisions Relating to Criminal Investigations and Proceedings
Service of summons
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18. (1) Subject to section 19, every summons shall be served upon the person to whom it is directed by any of the following persons —
a police officer;
a bailiff; or
any other person designated in writing by the Clerk of the Courts for the purpose of assisting the police with the service of summonses under this Act.
A bailiff and a designated person referred to in subsection (1)(b) and (c) shall have the authority and power to carry out such instructions as may be given by the Clerk of the Courts in accordance with this Act and may exercise on behalf of the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service, any powers granted to the police by this Act to issue summonses.
Each bailiff and designated person assigned under this section shall be provided with an identification card and the identification card shall —
be prepared and signed by the Clerk of the Courts or the Clerk of the Court’s designate;
contain the name and photograph of the bailiff or the designated person, as the case may be;
contain written authorisation for the bailiff or the designated person to effect service of summonses on behalf of the police;
be carried by the bailiff or the designated person when serving summonses; and SECTION 18A Criminal Procedure Code (2026 Revision) Page 20 Revised as at 31st December, 2025 c
be shown to each person on whom a summons is served.
Service of a summons by a person specified in subsection (1) shall be effected as follows —
by personally delivering the summons to the person on whom it is to be served;
by leaving the summons with an adult at the person’s last or most usual place of abode if the person on whom the summons is to be served cannot conveniently be located; or
by leaving it with the person’s employer. 18A. Service of witness summonses on designated public officers by electronic means 18A. (1) Notwithstanding service of summonses in accordance with section 18, in any criminal proceedings where a designated public officer is required to attend court as a witness, a witness summons may be served on that public officer by electronic means, by sending the summons to an electronic address to which a document may be delivered and to which the public officer has been given access for use in the course of the public officer’s employment.
For the purposes of subsection (1), a designated public officer includes any of the following —
a police officer;
a customs officer;
an immigration officer; or
any other public officer designated by the Deputy Governor in writing as a public officer on whom service of a witness summons may be effected by electronic means.
Service of a witness summons by electronic means on a public officer, as provided for in subsection (1), shall be deemed to be effective service, provided that the service of the witness summons is effected in accordance with subsection (4).
Where a witness summons is served on a public officer referred to in subsection (2), by electronic means, as provided for in subsection (1), in order for service of the witness summons to be deemed effective, and the intended public officer to have been duly served with a witness summons as at the date of the sending of such notification, the following shall be done —
notification of the witness summons shall be sent to the public officer by electronic means, by any of the following persons —
the Clerk of the Courts or the Clerk of the Court’s Nominee; or Criminal Procedure Code (2026 Revision) Section 19 c Revised as at 31st December, 2025 Page 21 Prosecutions’ Nominee;
the Director of Public Prosecutions or the Director of Public
the notification of the witness summons shall contain the following information in respect of the hearing of criminal proceedings —
the date;
the time;
the place;
the defendant’s name; and
the Criminal case number; and
whenever a person referred to in subsection (4)(a)(i) - (ii) serves a witness summons and notification of the witness summons to a designated public officer referred to in subsection (2), by electronic means, every reasonable effort shall be made to ensure that —
the e-mail address used to transmit the witness summons and the notification thereof, to the intended public officer, is the correct e- mail address for that public officer; to the public officer for use in the course of the public officer’s employment; thereof by electronic means is used, with proof of the electronic tracking system being provided in some tangible form; delivery of the witness summons and notification thereof by electronic means, physical evidence of that proof of successful electronic delivery of the summons, including the date on which service by electronic means was successfully effected, shall be retained and provided to the courts upon request; and
the e-mail address of the public officer is an e-mail address provided
a method of tracking delivery of the summons and notification
where an electronic tracking method provides proof of successful
where a document is served under section 18A, the person serving it would not be required to also provide the recipient with a hard copy.