{"id":"nsw:act-1984-045","name":"Sunday (Service of Process) Act 1984","slug":"sunday-service-of-process-act-1984","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"nsw","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"45 of 1984","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":107627,"registerId":"nsw-act-1984-045-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Name of Act","content":"#### 1 Name of Act\n\n1 Name of Act\n\n> This Act may be cited as the [Sunday (Service of Process) Act 1984](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1984-045).","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"#### 2 Commencement\n\n2 Commencement\n\n> > (1) Sections 1 and 2 shall commence on the date of assent to this Act.\n> \n> > (2) Except as provided by subsection (1), this Act shall commence on such day as may be appointed by the Governor in respect thereof and as may be notified by proclamation published in the Gazette.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Service of process on a Sunday","content":"#### 3 Service of process on a Sunday\n\n3 Service of process on a Sunday\n\n> > (1) Any writ, process, warrant, order, judgment or decree may be served on a Sunday.\n> \n> > (2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), service of any writ, process, warrant, order, judgment or decree (except in the case of an offence, breach of the peace or any warrant, writ or process for the apprehension of any person or for the entry into or search of any premises) on a Sunday on which Christmas Day falls shall be void.\n> \n> **s 3:** Am 1985 No 38, Sch 1.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Amendment of Act No 30, 1969","content":"#### 4 Amendment of Act No 30, 1969\n\n4 Amendment of Act No 30, 1969\n\n> Section 41 of the [Imperial Acts Application Act 1969](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1969-030) is repealed.","sortOrder":3}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: permitting service of legal process on Sundays with a specific exception for Christmas Day. No scope creep detected."},"complexity_factors":["Only 4 sections total","No defined terms section","Single operative provision with one straightforward exception","No cross-references to other legislation except for a simple repeal","Plain language drafting ('may be served', 'shall be void')","Legislation fits on a single page"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis short Act changes the rules about when legal documents can be delivered (\"served\") to people in New South Wales.\n\n**The main change:**\n\nBefore this law, you generally couldn't serve legal papers on a Sunday. This Act says **you can now serve legal documents on a Sunday** — including things like court writs, warrants, orders, and judgments.\n\n**The one big exception:**\n\nIf Christmas Day falls on a Sunday, you **cannot** serve legal papers on that day — **unless** it's for:\n- A criminal offence\n- A breach of the peace (public disorder)\n- A warrant to arrest someone\n- A warrant to enter or search a property\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis makes the legal system more practical. Courts and lawyers don't have to wait until Monday if urgent legal action is needed on a Sunday. The only protection left is for Christmas Day, respecting the religious significance of that particular Sunday.\n\n**What else it does:**\n\nIt also tidies up the statute books by removing an old rule from the *Imperial Acts Application Act 1969* that had previously restricted Sunday service of legal documents."},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the available metadata, the Act appears to have remained unchanged since its commencement version took effect on 28 February 1986. There is no evidence of scope creep or expansion beyond its original narrow purpose of regulating the service of legal process on Sundays."},"complexity_factors":["Very narrow and specific subject matter — limited to one type of legal activity on one day of the week","Short Act with minimal provisions (inferred from its age and single-purpose title)","No amendments since 1986, suggesting no accumulated complexity from legislative changes","Full text of operative provisions not provided, limiting detailed analysis","Interacts with broader procedural rules in courts, which could add minor complexity in practice"],"plain_english_summary":"This short NSW law restricts the service of legal documents on Sundays, affecting ordinary recipients, process servers (lawyers, sheriffs) and parties in litigation. It matters because whether documents delivered on a Sunday are valid can determine if legal steps stand or are challengeable.\n\nThe Act has stood unchanged since 28 February 1986 and remains in force; the full text wasn’t provided, so precise rules and exceptions aren’t available here."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The Act expands the temporal scope of valid service by authorising service on Sundays (s 3), while carving out Christmas Day for most civil process (s 3(2)). It also removes section 41 of the Imperial Acts Application Act 1969 (s 4), which may affect earlier statutory/backdrop rules; commencement is subject to a Governor-appointed date (s 2)."},"complexity_factors":["Narrow substantive change: single core rule permitting service on Sundays (s 3)","Specific carve-out for Christmas Day with exceptions for criminal/urgent enforcement (s 3(2))","Cross-Act amendment: repeal of s 41 of the Imperial Acts Application Act 1969 creates need to check historical interaction (s 4)","Staged commencement power vested in the Governor (s 2) introduces implementation timing consideration","Potential procedural ambiguity about what constitutes valid \"service\" and interaction with court rules and local practice"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act allows writs, warrants, orders, judgments and other court processes to be served on Sundays, changing when legal notices and enforcement can be executed. It affects process servers, police and parties in civil and criminal proceedings by widening possible service times and shifting timing decisions to those who serve documents.\n\nService done on a Sunday that is Christmas Day is void for most civil matters (but not for offences, breach-of-peace or arrest/search warrants). The Act also repeals section 41 of the Imperial Acts Application Act 1969."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/sunday-service-of-process-act-1984","history":"/api/acts/sunday-service-of-process-act-1984/history","analysis":"/api/acts/sunday-service-of-process-act-1984/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/sunday-service-of-process-act-1984/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/sunday-service-of-process-act-1984/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/sunday-service-of-process-act-1984/documents"}}