Dept. of Child Support Serv. v. Powell CA2/6

FACTS

Brian and Chantal Powell (Chantal) were married in 1987. They had two children. In 1992, they separated. Chantal contacted the Child Support Division of the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office (CSDLA) for assistance in obtaining child support. On August 27, 1992, the CSDLA filed a civil action for support for the minor children against Brian in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. On November 30, 1992, Fred Sloan, a registered process server for the CSDLA, served Brian by substituted service. (Code Civ. Proc., § 415.20.) He left a copy of the summons and complaint with Tracy Martine at a residence in Sherman Oaks, California. Martine told him that Brian did not live there, but he received his mail there. Brian did not answer the complaint. A default was entered against him on March 11, 1993. A judgment establishing Brian's monthly child support obligation was entered on April 20, 1993. Chantal filed for dissolution of her marriage in the Ventura County Superior Court on October 14, 1997. A process server certified that Brian was served

1 We shall refer to the parties by their first names, not from disrespect but to ease the reader's task. 2 with…