Collections and Judgment Enforcement

At some point, virtually every business will have to deal with a client that is simply not paying their bill. Depending on the relationship with the client, the amount of time the client has been in arrears, and the amount of the arrears, we may advise issuing a demand letter from our office prior to commencing litigation. The issuance of a prior demand letter can have several advantages including 1) it may result in a more cost-effective resolution as it is less costly to issue a demand letter than it is to commence litigation and 2) it may help preserve the client relationship as it is less aggressive than going to court. When it is not possible to reach a settlement prior to litigation, however, we will aggressively pursue the matter in the applicable New York court until either a settlement is reached or the matter is disposed of judicially.

At The Law Offices of Daniel A. Singer PLLC, we routinely defend clients in collection matters. We are adept at identifying defenses to collection actions under New York law even where a client believes that he or she does not have any defenses. Even when there is no genuine defense to the action, we work aggressively to pursue a settlement which is affordable for you. Critical to the resolution of any collection action is that the client obtains a release from the obligation so that the creditor does not attempt to pursue the matter again. At our firm, we draft the necessary language to ensure that such a release is effectuated.

Unfortunately, obtaining a judgment in an action does not ensure that such a judgment will be paid. When a judgment is not readily paid by the defendant, the option is to pursue judgement enforcement. At our firm, we employ various techniques pursuant to New York law to maximize the prospect of recovering on such a judgment, such as issuing information subpoenas to individuals and entities that may have information regarding the debtor’s assets, serving restraining notices on individuals and entities (such as banks) that have assets belonging to the debtor, serving an income execution on the debtor’s employer, and deposing the debtor and other individuals and entities that have information regarding the debtor’s assets. Where necessary, we also engage in post-judgment proceedings to uncover the debtor’s assets and/or information pertaining to such assets. We also utilize the services of outside companies to conduct asset and other searches which aid in the enforcement of a judgment.

We also represent debtors who are the subject of judgment enforcement, assisting them in protecting their interests and avoiding undue inquiry while at the same time remaining legally compliant.

Simply put, a fraudulent conveyance occurs when a debtor transfers property for little or no money or other consideration to evade creditors by putting the property out of the reach of creditors. As part of the judgment enforcement process, we investigate possible fraudulent conveyances and, where applicable we make the appropriate application to the court so as to reach to such fraudulently conveyed property to satisfy the judgment. We also represent defendants that are alleged to have engaged in fraudulent conveyances. Possible defenses to such an action under New York law might include, by example, that the conveyance was not done with the intent of putting the property out of the reach of the creditor and/or the conveyance was done for value.

Sometimes it is necessary to domesticate judgments obtained in foreign countries or in other states in order to reach to a debtor’s assets in New York. We represent clients seeking to domesticate such judgments in New York and, once such judgment is domesticated, represent them with respect to the collection of same. We also defend debtors that seek to resist the domestication of such judgments.

Please contact us today for a free telephone consultation.