Rule 4.3.Process: Out-of-State Service

Last amended July 1, 2014 · Last verified July 1, 2026

In one sentenceRule 4.3 is Ohio’s long-arm rule: it lists the kinds of contact with Ohio — doing business here, causing an injury here, owning property here, and similar acts — that let a court serve and hear a case against someone who lives outside the state.

Full Text of Rule 4.3

Text sizeJump to: (A) (B)

(A) When service permitted

Service of process may be made outside of this state, as provided in this rule, in any action in this state, upon a person who, at the time of service of process, is a nonresident of this state or is a resident of this state who is absent from this state. "Person" includes an individual, an individual’s executor, administrator, or other personal representative, or a corporation, partnership, association, or any other legal or commercial entity, who, acting directly or by an agent, has caused an event to occur out of which the claim that is the subject of the complaint arose, from the person's:

(1) Transacting any business in this state;

(2) Contracting to supply services or goods in this state;

(3) Causing tortious injury by an act or omission in this state, including, but not limited to, actions arising out of the ownership, operation, or use of a motor vehicle or aircraft in this state;

(4) Causing tortious injury in this state by an act or omission outside this state if the person regularly does or solicits business, engages in any other persistent course of conduct, or derives substantial revenue from goods used or consumed or services rendered in this state;

(5) Causing injury in this state to any person by breach of warranty expressly or impliedly made in the sale of goods outside this state when the person to be served might reasonably have expected the person who was injured to use, consume, or be affected by the goods in this state, provided that the person to be served also regularly does or solicits business, engages in any other persistent course of conduct, or derives substantial revenue from goods used or consumed or services rendered in this state;

(6) Having an interest in, using, or possessing real property in this state;

(7) Contracting to insure any person, property, or risk located within this state at the time of contracting;

(8) Living in the marital relationship within this state notwithstanding subsequent departure from this state, as to all obligations arising for spousal support, custody, child support, or property settlement, if the other party to the marital relationship continues to reside in this state;

(9) Causing tortious injury in this state to any person by an act outside this state committed with the purpose of injuring persons, when the person to be served might reasonably have expected that some person would be injured by the act in this state;

(10) Causing tortious injury to any person by a criminal act, any element of which takes place in this state, that the person to be served commits or in the commission of which the person to be served is guilty of complicity.

(B) Methods of service

(1) Service by clerk

The clerk may make service of process or other documents to be served outside the state in the same manner as provided in Civ.R. 4.1(A)(1) through Civ.R. 4.1(A)(3).

(2) Personal service

When ordered by the court, a "person" as defined in division (A) of this rule may be personally served with a copy of the process and complaint or other document to be served. Service under this division may be made by any person not less than eighteen years of age who is not a party and who has been designated by order of the court to make personal service of process. On request, the clerk shall deliver the summons to the plaintiff for transmission to the person who will make the service. The person serving process shall locate the person to be served and shall tender a copy of the process and accompanying documents to the person to be served.

Proof of service may be made as prescribed by Civ.R. 4.1 (B) or by order of the court. Failure to make service within the twenty-eight-day period and failure to make proof of service do not affect the validity of service.

End

Amendment History

Effective Date: July 1, 1970

Amended: July 1, 1971; July 1, 1980; July 1, 1988; July 1, 1991; July 1, 1997; July 1, 2012; July 1, 2014

Staff Note (July 1, 1997 Amendment)

Rule 4.3 Process: out-of-state service

Prior to the 1997 amendment, service of process under this rule was permitted only by certified mail. It appears that service of process by express mail, i.e. as that sort of mail is delivered by the United States Postal Service, can always be obtained return receipt requested, and thus could accomplish the purpose of notification equally well as certified mail. Therefore, the amendment provides for this additional option for service.

Other amendments to this rule are nonsubstantive grammatical or stylistic changes.

Staff Note (July 1, 2012 Amendment)

Rule 4.3(B) is amended to incorporate, rather than restate, the provisions of amended Civ.R. 4.1(A)(1) through Civ.R. 4.1(A)(3) for service by the clerk. The substantive changes (1) permit the clerk to make service of process outside the state using a commercial carrier service to make delivery by any method requiring a signed receipt and (2) make clear that the method of service of process permitted to be made by a person designated by the court is limited to personal service.

Also eliminated is a prior provision permitting service outside the state to be completed by the filing of an affidavit when service by certified or express mail is returned showing failure of delivery. Rules 4.6(C) and (D) address returns of service showing “refused” and “unclaimed” when service is attempted by U.S. mail under Civ.R. 4.1(A)(1)(a), and those provisions apply to service attempted outside the state by that method.

Staff Note (July 1, 2014 Amendments)

Rule 4.3(B)(2) is amended to be consistent with the provisions of Civ.R. 4.1(B) relating to personal service within the state which specify, “The person serving process shall locate the person to be served and shall tender a copy of the process and accompanying documents to the person to be served” and “Failure to make service within the twenty-eight-day period and failure to make proof of service do not affect the validity of service.”

Plain-English Summary

Division (A) reaches a nonresident, or an Ohio resident who is absent from the state, whose own conduct, directly or through an agent, caused the claim in the complaint to arise. The listed connections include transacting business in Ohio, contracting to supply goods or services here, causing a tortious injury by an act or omission in Ohio, causing injury from outside Ohio while regularly doing business or deriving substantial revenue here, breaching a warranty on goods meant for use in Ohio, holding an interest in Ohio real property, insuring an Ohio risk, owing spousal or child support tied to an Ohio marital relationship, and committing an intentional or criminal act with effects in Ohio.

Division (B) sets the methods: the clerk may serve an out-of-state defendant the same way as an in-state defendant, by certified or express mail or by commercial carrier, or the court may order personal service by a non-party at least eighteen years old.

As with in-state service, missing the twenty-eight-day window for personal service, or failing to promptly file proof of service, does not by itself undo an otherwise valid service.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does it mean for Ohio courts to have “long-arm” jurisdiction?

It means an Ohio court can serve and hear a case against someone outside Ohio if that person’s own conduct connects them to the state in one of the specific ways Rule 4.3(A) lists, such as transacting business or causing injury in Ohio.

What kinds of contact with Ohio allow out-of-state service?

Among others: transacting business in Ohio, contracting to supply goods or services here, causing a tortious injury here, owning or using Ohio real property, and insuring a risk located in Ohio.

How is an out-of-state defendant served under this rule?

The same way as an in-state defendant — by certified or express mail, or by a commercial carrier requiring a signed receipt — or, if the court orders it, by personal delivery through someone the court designates.

Source & verification. The rule text, Effective Date, Amended dates, and Staff Notes are reproduced verbatim from the official Ohio Rules of Civil Procedure (Ohio R. Civ. P. 4.3). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Ohio (Ohio Constitution, Art. IV, § 5(B)). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 1, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: out-of-state servicelong-arm statutenonresident servicepersonal jurisdiction over nonresidents