What is the purpose of an Acknowledgement of Service?

• A. It signals the defendant's intention to defend and extends the time to file a defence.
• B. It acknowledges the amount of damages.
• C. It withdraws the claim.
• D. It assigns the case to a judge.

Answer: (A)

An Acknowledgement of Service is a procedural step that confirms the defendant has received the claim and signals their intention to defend. By doing this, the defendant gains more time to prepare a defence. Typically, once a claim form is served, the defendant has a short period to respond; acknowledging service extends that window from 14 days to 28 days to file the defence. This action does not involve damages, does not withdraw the claim, and does not assign the case to a judge. If the defence isn’t filed within the extended period, the claimant can apply for default judgment.