COLLECTIONS

If you have unpaid or delinquent invoices, promissory notes, leases, finance agreements, loans, bounced checks, fees, fines or other delinquent obligations, contact us to enforce your rights and collect your debts. We provide timely, economical legal debt collection services on fixed fee or contingent fee basis designed to recover your debt fast.

We successfully represent banks, finance companies, equipment lessors, collection agencies, insurance carriers, attorneys, individuals, small businesses and government entities in collecting many different types of delinquent obligations. We promptly perform a common sense assessment of the debt or obligation and the available potential remedies to successfully recover delinquent debt. We strategically skip-trace, perform asset searches and conduct independent investigation to verify debtor’s location, business operations. We take legal action to collect to recover delinquent debts for businesses, individuals and government entities.

Contact us to obtain to get your delinquent debt collected!

Some of the debt collection services we provide include:

Accounts Receivable Management – Default Notices & Demand Letters

Unfortunately, some debtors simply ignore the creditor’s internal collection efforts. Hiring a collection agency may resolve some of the easier accounts through collection letters and phone calls. However, collection of the debt can end up stalled due to the limitation of collection agency remedies.

When the debtor receives an attorney crafted demand letter emphasizing the consequences of litigation, repossession, and other collection remedies – we get results where internal or collection agency efforts fail. Our correspondence emphasizes the risk to the debtor of immediate litigation and the use of prejudgment remedies to repossess assets, levy upon accounts and inventory and the debtor’s liability for attorney’s fees, costs and interest. These remedies have the potential for substantial disruption of the debtor’s business, cash flow and revenue – all of which motivates the debtor to resolve the delinquent account.

In appropriate cases, it may benefit the creditor to enter into installment payment agreement to get the account paying again. In installment payment situations, we require the debtor “buy-in” by requiring substantial down payments, additional pledged collateral or guarantors, and/or debtor’s written “Stipulation to Judgment” which provides that in the event of default a civil judgment will be immediately entered against the debtor and/or its guarantor for the entire debt, plus attorney’s fees and expense incurred.

Debt Collection Litigation & Prejudgment Remedies

Some debtors simply refuse to respond to any creditor or attorney demands and opportunities to resolve without the creditor resorting to litigation when necessary. In addition to filing suit, in order to accelerate collection efforts we use prejudgment remedies to expedite collection and recovery including:

Exercising a creditor’s right to levy upon certain of the debtors assets prior to judgment often result in the debtor “coming to terms” that the debt must be paid!

Most importantly a RTAO prohibits the transfer, concealment or impairment of the value of the asset absent violation of the Court’s order.

To obtain an RTAO, the creditor must establish (1) the claim arises from a contract, 2) the probable validity of the payment due, and (3) the balance due is in a stated or readily ascertainable amount.

An RTAO is available against corporations, partnerships, and against individuals for claims arising out of their trade, business, or profession. The application can be made on an expedited basis and without hearing upon a showing that delay in attachment would result in “great or irreparable injury” to the creditor.    The assets levied are available to satisfy the ultimate judgment entered.

  • Prejudgment Writ of Possession (“Claim & Delivery”):  Where the debt obligation arises from a business loan or finance agreement, equipment finance lease, or other secured loan obligation, generally the equipment (and often other collateral) serves as security for the debt. 

Upon default, creditors may seek to foreclose and obtain voluntary repossession of the collateral or assets pledged as security for the debt pursuant to the Commercial Code.  Where the debtor refuses repossession, our office may apply to court to require immediate possession of the tangible personal property being wrongfully withheld be “turned over” to local law enforcement prior to judgment.  Once a Writ of Possession is issued, the debtor may recognize that loss of the equipment or collateral will have a significant impact on their business operations, as well as the mounting legal costs and obligations and greatly incentivized to promptly resolve the delinquent account.  

Post Judgment Remedies

Often Debtors having lost at trial or otherwise having a judgment entered against them take measures to avoid payment, including closing accounts, selling real or personal property; changing locations, and concealing and fraudulently transferring assets. 

Once judgment is entered, “time is of the essence” to take post-judgment action!

Some remedies are pursued as a matter of course (real and personal property filings) and others are initiated after assessment of the costs and likelihood of recovery to protect creditors rights and interests. 

In addition to prejudgment remedies available described above, we use post judgment remedies to assist in collection, including:

  • Real Property Judgment Liens:  Immediately following entry of judgment, we record an Abstract of Judgment in each county where the debtor resides or where owns real property.  The abstract creates a lien on real property owned by the debtor in that county which is superior to all subsequent security interests recorded against the debtor’s real property in that county. If the debtor tries to sell or refinance the property, the creditor will be paid the judgment amount plus accrued interest from the escrow.  Where sufficient equity exists in the real property the creditor can also initiate a judicial foreclosure action to compel the debtor to pay off the obligation or risk loss of the real property.  Abstracts of judgment are valid for ten (10) years an may be renewed for an two additional ten (10) year periods.  Legal interest accrues on civil judgments at the rate of 10% per annum. Calculation of interest can be performed with this post-judgment interest calculator.
  • Judgment Lien on Personal Property. Immediately following entry of judgment, we also file a judgment liens with the California Secretary of State which creates a lien on the debtor’s personal property located in California including: accounts receivables, tangible chattel paper or promissory notes owed to the debtor, equipment, farm products, inventory, negotiable documents of title, and other personal property.  The benefit of this filing is that should the judgment debtor seek to transfer, assign or encumber this personal property, the transfer will generally be subject to the judgment creditors lien. Where the debtor cannot sell, transfer, encumber or pledge this personal property it motivates the creditor  to satisfy the judgment.
  • Order to Appear for Examination (Judgment Debtor Examination): Once judgment is entered, we engage in serving the debtor (or any third party with custody of assets owned by the debtor) to appear in court and testify under oath about the nature and extent of their assets, liabilities, employment and other assets. The debtor must truthfully answer questions and bring relevant documentation to the court.  Failure to appear or meaningfully participate in the examination subject the judgment debtor to contempt. Bank accounts or other assets discovered can be levied upon or wages garnished in order to satisfy the judgment.   
  • Charging Orders: Where the Judgment Debtor is a member of a partnership or limited liability company, the judgment debtor’s interest may be applied toward satisfaction of the judgment.
  • Fraudulent Transfers: Where the transferee takes the property despite the lien, we can initiate a “fraudulent transfer” action against the transferee under the Uniform Voidable Transactions Act.
  • Wage Garnishment: As result of investigation or the judgment debtor’s exam, where the judgment creditor discovers facts concerning the debtor’s employment, on behalf of the judgment creditor our firm will initiate wage garnishment proceedings to satisfy the judgment from the judgment debtor’s non-exempt earnings.
  • Bank Levy:  Whether the information is obtained through the debtor’s examination or through review of the creditors files and records, the creditor may levy upon bank accounts and safe deposit accounts in the name of creditor.
  • Till Tap or Keeper Levy:  Upon proper application by our firm on the judgment creditors behalf, the Court may direct the sheriff to be stationed at the business to take all money on the premises to take possession of all moneys coming into the business in order to satisfy the judgment.

“Out of State” or Foreign Jurisdiction Judgments

  • Sister State Judgments: If you have a judgment obtained from jurisdiction from outside of California, we will file the required documents and notices to make your judgment enforceable in California.
  • We will obtain a California Judgment for your for a fixed fee.
  • Once a judgment is entered in California, we utilize enforcement of judgment procedures to get you paid.

Compliance

Collection of debt is heavily regulated. All correspondence and notices from our office complies with relevant California and Federal “Fair Debt Collection Practices Acts” requirements and other relevant statute and regulations.