Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v. Jasper

Per ORCP 9, service of process is typically required to be sent to a party's attorney; if the party is not being represented by counsel, notice must be sent directly to the party.

Defendant appealed a trial court order, which denied his motion to set aside a default judgment pursuant to ORCP 71(B)(1)(d). Defendant assigned error to the trial court's denial of his motion. On appeal, Defendant argued that the ruling must be set aside because the judgment was void due to the Plaintiff improperly sending notice to the Defendant’s former attorney. In response, Plaintiff argued that while the notice was sent to the Defendant’s former attorney, it was effective because the Plaintiff did not know that the Defendant wasn't represented by that attorney. Per ORCP 9, service of process is typically required to be sent to a party's attorney; if the party is not being represented by counsel, notice must be sent directly to the party. The Court of Appeals held that because the attorney who received the service of process was not representing the Defendant in the instant matter, the service of process did not satisfy the requirements of ORCP 9. Reversed and Remanded.