Since my wifes attorney botched the service of the complaint to me, there is no civil summons in the file nor is there any signed receipt from me. As such, I was supposed to respond to the complaint by 12/05, but I did not. When I go to court, the first thing I will tell them is there is no record of service. In the meantime, can my wife’s lawyer move to default and if he does, that takes 4-6 weeks. Do I have this right?
The judge won’t move forward with the divorce if you appear and object on grounds that there is no proper service. They will have to properly serve you, then you will have 30 days to respond to the complaint.