TEXAS RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE
RULE 103, as it relates to requirements for eligibility and to obtain (excerpted:)
Process -- including citation and other notices, writs, orders and other papers issued
by the court -- may be served anywhere by:
(1) any sheriff or constable or other person authorized by law
(2) any person authorized by law or by written order of the court whois not less than
eighteen years of age (commonly referred to as a Rule 103 order)
(3) any person certified by the Supreme Court
No person who is a party to or interested in the outcome of the suit may serve any
process in that suit.
Other stipulations refer to the service of a forcible entry and detainer citation and
process that requires an enforcement action to be taken immediately by the person
delivering the process.
IMPORTANT:
The order authorizing a person to serve process may be made WITHOUT written
motion and no fee may be imposed for the issuance of such order. All that is
required is an affidavit stating the server is not less than 18, not a party and
disinterested in the case. No motion and no attorney's signature is required. This is
how process servers throughout Texas attained authorization to serve process on a
case-by-case or county-by-county (blanket orders) basis before certification was
implemented. Depending on which county the case is filed in, this remains an option
for some who are not certified.