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Post Judgment Oral Examination of a Judgment Debtor

Monday, October 29th, 2018

Following up on my earlier blog posts that included post-judgment interrogatories and requests for documents, a judgment holder can also request that the debtor appear before a court-appointed examiner and answer questions under oath from the judgment holder’s counsel.  Failure of the Debtor to appear for the exam or answer the questions truthfully could lead to imprisonment of the Debtor.

Here is a sample of some of the questions I ask in an oral examination:

Background

  1. Please provide your full name, including aliases.
  2. What is your soc Sec No.
  3. What is your Driver’s License Number.
  4. What is your date of birth.
  5. How many children do you have?
  6. What are the names of your children and their ages?
  7. Provide your children’s social security numbers.
  8. What is your current home telephone.
  9. What is your current cell phone numbers?
  10. Provide all email addresses you have used during the past 3 years?
  11. Provide the name, address and phone number for your 3 closest relatives not living with you?

Residence

  1. What is your current residence as of this morning?
  2. Do you own or rent?
  3. Are you current on your mortgage payments?
  4. Name all other real property owned by you or your spouse jointly or individually.
  5. Name all other real property rented by you or your spouse jointly or individually.
  6. [If renting, give name/address/phone number of the estate agent/landlord.]
  7. Have you recently moved?
  8. Name all addresses where you and/or your spouse have slept over the past 90 days.
  9. Provide all of your previous addresses utilized by you or your spouse over the past 7 years.
  10. Is your current residence up for sale?
  11. How much are you asking for it?
  12. How much is owed on it?
  13. Are you planning on moving?
  14. Are you in the process of purchasing or renting a new residence?
  15. If so, what will be your new address?
  16. How much did the new house cost?
  17. Provide the names of all persons currently living in the same location with you. 

Vehicles

  1. Name all motor vehicles owned by you or your spouse.
  2. Owned or leased?
  3. Year/make/model/condition?  Registration number?  License plate number?
  4. Are the vehicles owned outright or are they financed?
  5. If so by whom?
  6. Are you in the process of buying a motor vehicle?
  7. What are the vehicles worth today?
  1. List the automobiles purchased by you or your spouse within the past 7 years.
  2. Do you or your spouse own a boat? If so, follow up.

I also ask detailed questions about current employment and employment history, bank accounts, general financial questions dealing with stocks and other investments, IRAs, retirement, life insurance, wages and income, tax returns, and any other sources of income or assets.

 

Post Judgment Request for Documents

Monday, October 29th, 2018

Following up on my earlier blog post that included post-judgment Interrogatories, whereby a judgment holder can require a debtor to answer certain questions about the debtor’s assets and wages, a judgment holder can also request that the debtor turn over documents.

Here is a sample of some of the documents I request.

  1. Defendant’s federal and state income tax returns for the years ____, ____, and ____, including any Schedules thereto, whether such returns were individually filed or jointly filed.
  2. For all automobiles which Defendant has any ownership interest, exercise control or possession or have any financial responsibility for, provide the following documents for each vehicle:
    1. Copies of the official vehicle Titles;
    2. Copies of the Vehicle Registration document;
    3. Any documents showing the Tag number;
    4. Any documents showing the VIN number;
    5. Copies of loan statements for past 12 months;
    6. Copies of records indicating payments made during the last 12 months; and,
    7. Copies of all loan agreements and notes.
  3. All documents concerning payments, loans, exchanges, sales, distributions or transfers of cash or assets (including automobiles, boats, jewelry, electronics, etc.) with value of $2,000 or greater made by Defendant since __________ through the present.
  4. All documents and bank account statements from any financial institution where Defendant has, or had within the past 3 years, an account.
  5. All documents and brokerage account statements from any bank, financial institution, or brokerage firm, where Defendant has, or had within the past 3 years, a brokerage or stock account.
  6. For any real estate owned by Defendant either individually or jointly with another person or entity at any time since __________, provide all documents related thereto, including any rental/lease agreements, rental receipts, deeds, purchase contracts, mortgage contracts, mortgage notes, and mortgage statements.
  7. For any income earned by Defendant during the past 3 years, provide copies of documents related thereto, including pay stubs, checks, receipts, statements, work orders, bank documents, including deposit slips and wire transfers, related to any payment to Defendant.
  8. For any business entity, corporation, company, partnership, (“Entity”) for which Defendant has or had an ownership interest or management control at any time during the past 3 years, provide all documents concerning any bank or investment account of the Entity, all documents concerning any loans or disbursement made by the Entity to Defendant or one of your family members, and all financial statements including general ledgers, accounts receivable, accounts payable, income statements, balance sheets and profit and loss statements concerning the Entity.
  9. For any Entity for which Defendant has or had an ownership interest or management control at any time during the past 3 years, provide copies of the Articles of Incorporation or Organization, By Laws, Shareholder Agreement, Operating Agreement, Partnership Agreement and Minutes of any Board or Shareholder meetings.
  10. Provide all documents concerning any financial agreements, transactions or loans made between Defendant and any other individuals or entities during the past 3 years.

 

Collecting on a Judgment in Maryland – Post Judgment Interrogatories

Friday, October 26th, 2018

A common misconception that many business owners have about litigating a dispute is the belief that just because a party wins at trial, the money won in the judgment automatically is transferred to the winner.  Usually, that is far from the case.  While it is never easy to go to trial and win a money judgment against another party, sometimes winning is actually easier than collecting on the money judgment won.  A judgment is simply a piece of paper from the Court stating who won and who lost.  However, if the losing party is not financially ready and willing to pay you, a judgment holder has to be prepared to continue to work. Maryland law permits a judgment holder to take certain steps to collect.  One of these steps is the use of post-judgment interrogatories, which are questions the winner may ask of the losing party, known as the debtor, about the amount and location of his/her/its wages, assets, bank accounts and property.  Here is a sample of some of the questions I ask.  Once the amount and location of the debtor’s assets are revealed, an experienced collections attorney will be able to pursue the amounts you are owed.

  1. Provide the address and fair market value of all real estate owned by Defendant either individually or jointly with another person or entity.
  2. Provide Defendant’s federal and state income tax returns for the years x, y and z, including any Schedules thereto, whether such returns were filed individually or jointly.
  3. Detail Defendant’s net worth, including all such assets owned jointly.
  4. Provide the year, make, model, mileage, blue book value, and VIN number of all vehicles owned by Defendant.
  5. Detail the name and address of each financial institution where Defendant has an account, including the routing number and the account number for each.
  6. Detail the balances for each account detailed in your response to Interrogatory #5.
  7. Provide Defendant’s bank statements for each account specified in your response to Interrogatories #5 from x through the present.
  8. Detail all other assets owned by Defendant not yet mentioned and the fair market value for each.
  9. Detail whether Defendant has disposed of or transferred any asset within the last 180 days. If yes, give the name and address of each person or entity who received any asset and describe each asset.
  10. Detail any ownership interest Defendant has in any corporation, partnership, or limited liability company. In so doing, identify the name of the corporation, partnership, or limited liability company, the state of incorporation or organization, the amount or percentage of the ownership interest, and the fair market value of the ownership interest.
  11. For any corporation, partnership or limited liability company named in your response to Interrogatory #10, provide any shareholder, partnership or operating agreement to which Defendant is a party.
  12. Detail all income, wages, or other compensation of any kind received by Defendant within the last 180 days.