§ 254. Service of citation. A citation to the persons interested must be served on all parties, other than the petitioner, who are interested in the fund, including sureties of the committee or conservator; but the court may, in its discretion, dispense with the service on such incompetent person or conservatee, and, if the time limited by due advertisement for presentation of claims has expired before the issue of citation, creditors who have not duly presented their claims need not be served. The court may, by order, direct such citation to be served on creditors who have presented claims accompanied by post-office address, as provided in section two hundred and fifty, by depositing a copy of the same at least twenty days prior to the return day thereof in the post-office at the place where such committee or conservator, resides, duly inclosed and directed to each of such creditors at the post-office address specified by him as provided in section two hundred and fifty, with the postage prepaid, and publishing such citation once in each week for at least four weeks prior to such return day in one or more newspapers to be designated by the court as most likely to give notice to such creditors. A citation personally served within the county where such incompetent person or conservatee resided at the time of his becoming incompetent or incapable of managing his affairs, or an adjoining county, must be served at least eight days before the return thereof; if in any other county, at least fifteen days before the return thereof. The court may direct service to be made by publication, when it is satisfied by affidavit or verified petition, either that the person to be served is unknown or that his residence can not, after diligent inquiry, be ascertained, or that he can not, after due diligence, be found within the state. The order for such service must direct service of the citation upon such person to be made by publication thereof in one newspaper to be designated by the court as most likely to give notice to the person to be served once a week for four weeks, and that a copy of the citation be forthwith deposited in the post-office duly inclosed and directed to each person so served at his last known place of residence or post-office address, and the postage paid thereon, at least thirty days before the return day thereof. When publication has been ordered, personal service without the state made, if within the United States, at least thirty days, or without the United States, at least forty days before the return day, is equivalent to publication and mailing. Personal service on minors, incompetent persons and conservatees shall be made as prescribed by law for service of citations issued by surrogates for final accounting, and personal service on one or two or more creditors, claiming as co-partners or otherwise as joint creditors shall be equivalent to personal services on all, and voluntary appearance either in person or by attorney shall be equivalent to personal service, and such appearance may be made by any one claiming an interest, though not served, and such person shall thereupon become a party to the proceeding.
