Adverse Parties and Lawsuits

Handling Adverse Parties, Lawsuits, and Legal Documents

If an attorney representing an adverse party calls or writes you or your staff, please indicate that your legal counsel will contact him or her, and refrain from speaking to him or her yourself. Then, please alert the Assistant Attorney General immediately by forwarding any written correspondence, preferably by a scanned attachment to an email message. Also, please notify this office immediately if the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) or any other federal or state agency contacts you concerning a complaint or an investigation.

If in your capacity as an officer or employee, you are served with a lawsuit or other legal documents, proper service will be by a deputy sheriff, federal marshal, or private process server. Do not accept service on behalf of another individual. Regardless of how you receive any suit or legal document in which the VCCS, a college, or you are named as a party, it is crucial for you to get a copy of the suit or other legal document to the Assistant Attorney General immediately. The documents should be date stamped or otherwise indicate the day, time, and place of delivery and by whom, if the identity of the individual delivering it to you can be determined. Colleges and the System Office should maintain a log of all services of process. Courts usually impose a strict response deadline based upon the date of service.