How to deliver documents

Note: Mouse over any of the terms in green type to see a definition.

Sometimes a legal process will require that a document be delivered to the other party or parties in your case. Delivering a document includes handing over the document personally, having someone else hand it over, or sending it by courier, mail, e-mail, or fax. It does not include filling out an Affidavit of Service and having it sworn or affirmed.

If you are not sure whether you need to serve or deliver a document, check the rules of the court you are using (Provincial or Supreme Court) or the relevant self-help guide for the court process you are going through. For more information, see the fact sheet on this website called The difference between serving and delivering documents.

There are special rules about how to deliver documents. If your self-help guide instructs you to deliver documents to the other party, you may choose to have them served instead, because "serving" a document always includes delivering the document.

Here are three ways to deliver documents:

Fax the documents

If the other party has given you a fax number as part of their address for delivery, you can deliver documents by fax.

  1. Use one of following two fax cover sheets. Which one you must use depends on which court your case is in.
Provincial Court Supreme Court

Use the blank Fax Cover Sheet (PDF) on the Court Services page of the Ministry of Attorney General website.

Use this blank Cover Memorandum (Form 9) (Word) (PDF)

Note: The PDF forms above are programmed so you can fill them out online.

  1. Fax the document to the fax number provided in the address for delivery.

Notes: There are special rules for faxing long documents. If the document you are faxing, including the cover page, is more than 16 pages, you must send it between 5 p.m. and 8 a.m., unless the other party agrees to receive it earlier.

Be aware of your time limits for delivering the document (the self-help guide will tell you if there are time limits). A fax is considered delivered on the day it is transmitted if it is sent before 4 p.m. on a business day (Monday to Friday, except holidays). If it is sent after 4 p.m. or on a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday, it is considered delivered on the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday.

Deliver documents by mail

You can also deliver a document by ordinary mail to the address for delivery. You must pay full postage.

Note: Be aware of your time limits for delivering the document (the self-help guide will tell you if there are time limits). A mailed document will be considered delivered seven days after the day you mailed it, unless that day is was a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday. If it was, then the document is considered delivered on the next day following the Saturday, Sunday, or holiday. Mail is not a good option if your instructions are, for example, to deliver the document within two days, or by noon the next day.

E-mail the documents

You can e-mail the documents to the other party if he or she included an e-mail address in the "address for delivery."


For more information about delivering Supreme Court documents, see Rule 11 of the Supreme Court Rules of Court.

A participant in a given court case, contract, or other legal matter; can be an individual, a corporation, or other entity.
A document that contains facts that you swear under oath or affirm to be true. A lawyer, notary public, or commissioner of oaths must witness your signature and sign your Affidavit.
The act of delivering or leaving documents with the other party. Usually followed by completing and swearing or affirming an Affidavit of Service to certify that the documents were received by the other party.

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