For plaintiffs in a court case who’ve been awarded damages or have received a settlement, there is nothing more frustrating than finding themselves unable to collect on their claim. Deadbeat defendants can find a number of ways to avoid paying what they owe. Often they’ll hide their assets in secret bank accounts or real-estate holdings that the court is not aware of and claim bankruptcy when it comes time to pay. When someone is faced with an uncooperative defendant, often their only option is to turn to a judgment recovery specialist.
These men and women in the judgment recovery business are able to help those with little legal recourse to claim the money they are owed. There are a number of ways to claim the money owed through a civil judgment. In many ways, judgment enforcement agents are like private detectives. They will search through a business or individual’s assets to discover any hidden caches of wealth that should have been disclosed and paid after the trial.
Judgment enforcement services work through a national database and are all properly certified for their jobs. By being a part of these agencies, they have access to special databases that provide pertinent information that can be used to help render services for their client. By using these tools in addition to a little legwork, some of the best judgment enforcement services are able to quickly and efficiently recover unpaid civil judgments.
Sometimes, a client might need their money immediately. The circumstances that required the civil suit in the first place have taken a toll on their finances and they are in desperate need of relief. In instances such as these, many judgment enforcement services will offer to purchase the sum of the settlement for a price that is slightly less than original payment. However, clients will have this money immediately to do with what they wish and never have to worry about the slow trickle of garnished wages or wait for necessary legal action to take place.
Be aware that judgment enforcement services often have their hands tied by a statute of limitations. These vary from state to state, but all have a length of several years. Plaintiffs who have been waiting an unreasonable amount of time should immediately contact a judgment enforcement service so that they don’t miss out on the opportunity to ever collect on their judgment.
Once a plaintiff is in contact with a judgment recovery service, payment will depend on the particular company they do business with. Some may take a percentage of the total amount of the judgment recovered while others might charge a flat fee. Whatever option the client chooses, they’ll be sure to find themselves significantly richer themselves due to the hard working individuals at the judgment enforcement agency.
Article Source: Al-Rakeesh Alexander from EzineArticles.com
Welcome to Dedicated Solutions Group, a company focused on Judgment Recovery & Enforcement.
Showing posts with label investigations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label investigations. Show all posts
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Collection Law Firm Victorious Against State in Supreme Court Case
The Georgia Supreme Court recently upheld a lower court ruling that the state’s attorney general’s office, acting on behalf of the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs, overstepped constitutional bounds in demanding documents from a law firm practicing debt collection in the state.
Georgia’s Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA) was investigating Frederick J. Hanna & Associates (FJH), based in Marietta, Ga., following consumer complaints about the firm’s debt collection practices. OCA requested files from FJH in their investigation, which FJH refused to hand over. OCA then had the state attorney general file a lawsuit against the company to compel them to cooperate.
Fred Hanna, CEO of the company, said that his firm had offered to turn over all files for cases in which there was a consumer complaint, but the OCA had requested all files, which would include thousands of cases.
“They were taking the shield law used to protect consumers and turning it into a sword to attack me,” Hanna said. “There are already enough laws to protect debtors.”
A lower court agreed and denied the state’s request for the files, stating that because FJH’s day-to-day operation directly involves the practice of law, and because the investigative demand directly impacts their practice of law, that demand is an attempt by the OCA to regulate the practice of law and constitutes an impermissible interference by the executive branch into the exclusive jurisdiction of the Court in violation of the separation of powers doctrine.
On June 7, the Georgia Supreme Court upheld the ruling. The seven-justice panel was split on the decision 4-3.
Even with the success his firm had against the state, Hanna expects lawsuits against collection firms to continue to multiply as plaintiff attorneys look for cases that are difficult to fight. Many law firms that pursue collections do so throughout the country, Hanna explained.
He noted that it is very costly to fight a case filed in a different jurisdiction, like Hawaii. These cases would dry up quickly if laws were changed to require filing of cases wherever the collection firm is domiciled, Hanna said.
Hanna doesn’t expect a further appeal of the case because he doesn’t see any federal implications. Yet he says that other debt collection law firms in other states, if they have similar laws to Georgia, might be able to cite this case if they face similar circumstances.
“Every lawyer in state of Georgia should be thanking Fred Hanna for taking on the state government on behalf of law-abiding lawyers,” said John H. Bedard, Jr., managing partner of Bedard Law Group PC, Duluth, Ga. “He did not yield to the tremendous pressure that a state can put on a defendant.”
It’s very easy to sensationalize the behavior of “a few bad actors” in the industry, Bedard added. “Fred is not one of them. The state court has vindicated Fred. Every lawyer in the state owes him a debt of gratitude.”
Even though Hanna won the case in the state’s highest court, Bedard expects state officials to continue aggressively pursuing cases against collection firms, because such cases make good political press.
“There is no need for more regulation of law-abiding collection firms, but unfortunately, politicians get a lot of mileage out of reporting to their constituencies that they’ve taken on a wrong-doer and collection agencies are erroneously targeted. It makes a lot of headlines.”
The coverage tends to be one-sided, according to Bedard. “The articles paint us all with the same sort of brush. No one reports about the good collection firms do for consumers. Law-abiding firms help consumers dig out of their financial problems. They help consumers save their homes, save their automobiles protect their credit and get their financial affairs in order. The public needs to know all of the good that the industry does – helping keep children in school, clothes on their backs and food in their mouths. The industry delivers an estimated $39 billion back to the economy. That benefits everyone in the country.”
Georgia’s Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA) was investigating Frederick J. Hanna & Associates (FJH), based in Marietta, Ga., following consumer complaints about the firm’s debt collection practices. OCA requested files from FJH in their investigation, which FJH refused to hand over. OCA then had the state attorney general file a lawsuit against the company to compel them to cooperate.
Fred Hanna, CEO of the company, said that his firm had offered to turn over all files for cases in which there was a consumer complaint, but the OCA had requested all files, which would include thousands of cases.
“They were taking the shield law used to protect consumers and turning it into a sword to attack me,” Hanna said. “There are already enough laws to protect debtors.”
A lower court agreed and denied the state’s request for the files, stating that because FJH’s day-to-day operation directly involves the practice of law, and because the investigative demand directly impacts their practice of law, that demand is an attempt by the OCA to regulate the practice of law and constitutes an impermissible interference by the executive branch into the exclusive jurisdiction of the Court in violation of the separation of powers doctrine.
On June 7, the Georgia Supreme Court upheld the ruling. The seven-justice panel was split on the decision 4-3.
Even with the success his firm had against the state, Hanna expects lawsuits against collection firms to continue to multiply as plaintiff attorneys look for cases that are difficult to fight. Many law firms that pursue collections do so throughout the country, Hanna explained.
He noted that it is very costly to fight a case filed in a different jurisdiction, like Hawaii. These cases would dry up quickly if laws were changed to require filing of cases wherever the collection firm is domiciled, Hanna said.
Hanna doesn’t expect a further appeal of the case because he doesn’t see any federal implications. Yet he says that other debt collection law firms in other states, if they have similar laws to Georgia, might be able to cite this case if they face similar circumstances.
“Every lawyer in state of Georgia should be thanking Fred Hanna for taking on the state government on behalf of law-abiding lawyers,” said John H. Bedard, Jr., managing partner of Bedard Law Group PC, Duluth, Ga. “He did not yield to the tremendous pressure that a state can put on a defendant.”
It’s very easy to sensationalize the behavior of “a few bad actors” in the industry, Bedard added. “Fred is not one of them. The state court has vindicated Fred. Every lawyer in the state owes him a debt of gratitude.”
Even though Hanna won the case in the state’s highest court, Bedard expects state officials to continue aggressively pursuing cases against collection firms, because such cases make good political press.
“There is no need for more regulation of law-abiding collection firms, but unfortunately, politicians get a lot of mileage out of reporting to their constituencies that they’ve taken on a wrong-doer and collection agencies are erroneously targeted. It makes a lot of headlines.”
The coverage tends to be one-sided, according to Bedard. “The articles paint us all with the same sort of brush. No one reports about the good collection firms do for consumers. Law-abiding firms help consumers dig out of their financial problems. They help consumers save their homes, save their automobiles protect their credit and get their financial affairs in order. The public needs to know all of the good that the industry does – helping keep children in school, clothes on their backs and food in their mouths. The industry delivers an estimated $39 billion back to the economy. That benefits everyone in the country.”
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Welcome to DSG!
Dedicated Solutions Group is a company focused on Professional Investigations, Judgment Recovery, and Attorney Support Services.
We encourage you to visit our main website at http://www.dedicatedsolutionsgroup.com/ for more information.
You can also follow our blog here or search for us on FaceBook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.com
Our intent is to provide information to the public and provide awareness. Our hope is that we can provide some valuable information while we continue to promote and market our business.
We encourage you to visit our main website at http://www.dedicatedsolutionsgroup.com/ for more information.
You can also follow our blog here or search for us on FaceBook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.com
Our intent is to provide information to the public and provide awareness. Our hope is that we can provide some valuable information while we continue to promote and market our business.
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