Client claims bankruptcy

JJM IV

JJM IV

Location
Hampstead
I just had my first client, who I took to court and received a judgement for $3,400, evade me. Two months later I received a letter from his lawyer claiming bankruptcy. My lawyer suggests giving up. I don't do that. Suggestions? He has a one million dollar beach house, where I did the tree work. He even stated he appreciated the work on the day it was completed.
 
Take the 3400 out in trade! Trade for a dumping site. Right in front of those million dollar doors! $10 a load till he pays you the balance, sounds fair to me!

Sorry man sounds like a hard pill to swallow, but it might be the best medicine, lawyers aren’t normally wrong.
 
That's really tough man, sorry to hear it. Bankruptcy law is pretty tight, once it has gone before a judge, the judge basically writes off what he owes you like it never existed. By law you are not allowed to go after him for it if your bill was specifically included in the bankruptcy, you should be able to get a copy of the ruling from the court to be sure it was.

If it has, I believe there is still a way to write the loss off on your taxes so that's at least something.
 
Don't know the laws where you are at but around here the best coarse of action for no payment is filing a lien on the property.
 
Good stuff here, liens etc. Make sure of the "bankruptcy". Did you do the work for HIM or one of his companies/corporations? Sounds like "politics" as usual for some of the rich getting richer.
Sounds like you need to do some more homework, verify the bankruptcy, the ownership of the home, personal or corporation etc. Find out how to do this on your own time so you can save that expense. In the end you may have just been F'ed by our system, enjoy the company.
 
One other thought. You mentioned your attorney but did you try small claims court first? There are people and companies out there that know it is not worth the money to pursue small payments and indeed it may not be worth the TIME or the MONEY, that is your choice. Years ago I took a guy to small claims for 5 bucks. He was an asshole that played that game to everyone. It cost him a couple of days of lost work, (court time) plus a couple hundred bucks. Cost me time too but it was GOOD time for me.
 
cerviarborist said:
The important thing is to verify that they did indeed file bankruptcy. They've got to list you as a creditor and they have to actually file a case in bankruptcy court. If you weren't notified through the bankruptcy court, they may just be blowing smoke at you.
Click to expand...

Would we as businesses be considered a creditor in the courts eyes? As a service industry I would argue we don’t offer credit, which may be looked at differently in the courts. (I don’t know this answer, but am going to ask my financial institution).

This is great information, all business owners should have knowledge of how to navigate. It’s a shame there is all of this protection for these people that live WAY above their means, but those of us who wake up every day, work hard just to do it again tomorrow have no protection for our investments.
 
BigShots could be persuasive.

I bet eggs would take the 'G's generated. Probably have to use a minimal layer of saran wrap for things more rewarding.

Drive-by launching.


Just kidding.


If the guy was being a scum bag, I'd let the whole neighborhood know that with large signs on my truck parked legally in front of his house. "Need to be paid $3,4o0 for a quality work done to contract terms."
Embarrass the F out of him.
 
I was referred to a claims lawyer who operates on a one third contingency. She grinds out the work. Every state has these lawyers and they do a great job.
 
@Sawtooth; Welcome to the TreeBuzz forum! I think you are going to like it here! Congratulations on your first post!

I'm proud to say that I can claim the honor of having given you your first "Like". I look forward to reading more from you!

Tim
 
Sorry that happened JJ... Been there a few times and each still irk me to this day... I must admit that I kind of like flyingsquirrel's idea... On the other hand, maybe you can take the dude climbing some time...
 
Did you get a down payment on the job just curious? I scrolled through all the posts and didn't see it mentioned but if it was sorry.

On more expensive jobs where you're dealing with a few thousand dollars a lot of contractors will tell you it's a good idea to get a down payment, and put in your contract that the second payment needs to be made IMMEDIATELY upon completion of work. So that means you collect your second payment before you leave the job site.

It sucks but this type of nonsense happens. My advice would be to do a cost / benefit analysis. How much is it going to cost you to fight it and is it worth it at the end of the day? If it's just going to cost you and you really aren't going to make anything from it after legal fees and what have you it might be more logical to walk away. Only you can know what is right in this situation.
 
If you're bill was put into the bankruptcy there is nothing you can do. Get a copy from the bankruptcy court to verify that your bill was put in. If it was and you continue to contact him for payment you can be sued. Lawyers contact people who have gone through bankruptcy trying to stir up business by suing creditors that don't back off after the bankruptcy is final. If you have a bill with him that he submitted to the court you are a "creditor". If your lawyer told you to back off I would heed his advice.
 
Depending on your local laws and the timeline of the events you might have a case for Theft of Services. I've had to use threat of that before to light a fire under some obstinate people who dared me to take them to small claims court to face their $600/hr lawyer. Amazing how fast their tune changes.
 
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