The act of delivering a writ or summons upon someone WordNet 3.0 & Open English WordNet

In the U.S. legal system, service of process is the procedure by which a party to a lawsuit gives an appropriate notice of initial legal action to another party, court, or administrative body in an effort to exercise jurisdiction over that person so as to force that person to respond to the proceeding before the court, body, or other tribunal. Wikipedia

The delivery of a summons, complaint or other court petition Wikipedia Disambiguation

Official process of notifying someone of legal proceedings Wikidata

The serving, or delivery, of a summons or writ. Wiktionary

The delivery of information to a person or entity providing notice that they are being sued with sufficient detail for them to respond to the suit. Wiktionary

Delivery of information providing notice. Wiktionary (translation)

The action of the verb to serve. Wiktionary