Legal Question in Family Law in Washington

As to the certified letter, it may have been placed in the mailbox on May 3 but after the pickup time. Or, the "USPS Facility" may be someplace other than the location it was deposited in the mail, even if deposited before the pickup time. Either way, the declaration as to that envelope would be accurate. You should contact the USPS to have those questions answered. (Note that the absence of any USPS marking is not relevant. Normal procedure is for the office to have certified mail materials on hand and to place them on the envelope themselves. Thus the post office would not need to make any marking as to stamp or certification as of the time the envelop is deposited in the mail or picked up by the mailman.

As to the non-certified letter, it was clearly not even sent until three days letter. I believe the one who handles the mail should sign the declaration. The signer may, however, have given the letter to staff for mailing on the 3rd but staff was remiss. See CR 5(e) at https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/?fa=court_rules.display&group=sup&set=cr&ruleid=supcr05. Note that service is actually made on the third day after placing the item in the mail.

There are several questions. (1) The most important is when it was served. The date of service is the 6th, assuming the item was placed in the mail on the 3rd. If you received it on the 6th you were served on the 6th. (2) The second is whether there was a false certification by the attorney. Note that it appears the attorney can certify without being the person who places it in the mail--"by affidavit of the person who mailed the papers, or by certificate of the attorney." CR 5(b)(2)(B). (3) Whether service was done as required. It is not clear from your question whether the non-certified envelope was required by the statute, rule or order that led to the mailing. It could have been "belt and suspenders" on the part of the attorney, rather than what was actually required. (4) What traction can you get for your own position in the matter? (a) If there are strict service requirements, the postmark of the 6th may well invalidate the entire matter (e.g., perhaps foreclosure requirements (though I am not conversant with those specifics)). If not and you received the certified letter on the 6th, you cannot say you did not get served. (b) You might be able to have the attorney squirm in court for what was or became a false certification. Or you may get sanctions against him. It would probably depend upon the facts. (c) You probably could not get criminal charges filed for false swearing.