What Legal Actions Can I Take If Someone Owes Me Money with Interest?

If you have a legal basis for their debt obligation, such as a contract, you can pursue legal action to obtain a judgment against them. Once you have a judgment, there are various legal means available to collect the debt, such as levying against their bank accounts or attaching their wages. However, in practice, enforcing a debt can be a complex and sometimes futile endeavor.

Legal Basis for Debt Obligation

To legally pursue someone for a debt, you need a clear legal basis, typically outlined in a formal agreement like a contract. If a debt is owed based on a contract, you can initiate legal proceedings to enforce the terms of the contract. This might involve filing a lawsuit and obtaining a judgment against the debtor. With a judgment, you can pursue various collection methods, including:

Levying Bank Accounts: You can request the court to seize funds from the debtor's bank account to satisfy the judgment. Attaching Wages: The court can order a portion of the debtor's wages to be withheld and paid to you. Other Legal Means: There are various other methods depending on your jurisdiction, such as liens on properties or garnishment.

It's important to follow the proper legal procedures to ensure your actions are compliant with local laws and regulations.

Practical Limitations and Experience

Debt collection can be challenging and often falls short in putting money directly in your pocket. My experience has shown that those who fail to pay often show little to no respect for financial obligations. They may owe multiple people and display a general indifference to repayment. Here are a couple of personal anecdotes to illustrate this:

Trial Against My Landlord

I took my landlord to landlord-tenant court over a security deposit dispute. Our county required us to sit with a mediator, and through their assistance, we agreed my security deposit would be returned within 14 days. When the landlord did not comply, I brought him back to court and informed him I had not received his check. He quickly sent a new check on the spot. This experience taught me the importance of following through and adhering to legal procedures.

Unpaid Child Support

My ex-husband, the children's father, still owes me over $100,000 in unpaid child support. I have consistently petitioned the court to enforce the court order and even requested the court to increase the arrears payments to the legal limit. Our upcoming hearing in December is for further action on these arrears. This ongoing struggle highlights the complexities and persistence required in recovering unpaid debts.

Child Support Regulations and Collection

Child support rules detail specific guidelines for what constitutes a delinquent payment. According to the rules, a payment is not delinquent until no partial or full payments have been made for three consecutive months. For an account with a payment date of the first of the month, it cannot be considered overdue until the first of the following month and after three more months of non-payment. Even then, the state must wait another month before sending a threatening notice to the obligor and a couple of weeks before implementing enforcement techniques.

These delays mean that a car with an unpaid note could have been repossessed long before it was actually acted upon. In California, private collection firms are generally prohibited from engaging with the obligor until no payment has been made in three consecutive months, which adds another layer of complexity to the process.

While the legal process can be tedious and time-consuming, understanding the rules and taking appropriate steps can help increase your chances of success in recovering your debt.