Hi all,
I recently won a judgment in NC Small Claims Court for a little over $3,000 against a former roommate for back rent. Now begins the fun of collecting it.
I'm relatively new to NC and was surprised to find that NC doesn't appear to allow garnishment of wages - best I can tell, the only 2 ways I will get money are A)Him paying willingly and B)The Sheriff seizing his assets and selling them.

The person has no significant assets that I am aware of - basically a car worth less than he owes on it and some misc personal effects which will add up to less than what he is allowed to protect, so (B) is likely out of the question. If he was going to pay willingly, I wouldn't have had to take him to court, so (A) is likely out of the question also.

The deadbeat is relatively young, has a dead-end job and no college degree so, to be honest, I don't see him trying to buy a house any time soon or having a significant amount of money to seize. I'm also concerned that he may leave the state in the next year or two - which would make the judgment more difficult, at a minimum, to claim.

Something interesting came to mind for me though. He told the judge (I believe in an attempt to gain sympathy) that he had the money to pay me today...of course he was out the door as soon as the judge issued her ruling. If he told the judge he had the money to pay me, but then doesn't list that money when I file with the Sheriff for an execution, doesn't that either could as perjury if he didn't have it, or something (not sure what?) if he doesn't list that when the Sheriff demands his assets? Basically I'm wondering if there is a way I can make this a lose-lose situation for him.

Does anyone have any thoughts/tips on this? To be honest, I don't mind spending more time/money on this than it's worth, as I find it interesting actually.

If he lived in NC when you got the judgement, you should have no trouble collecting against him no matter where he moves. Courts have to give "full faith and credit" to judgements of other courts, and the only argument against that is that the original court didn't have jurisdiction- but a state court definitely has jurisdiction over residents in its district.

(I am not a lawyer, etc.)

Some interesting info here: http://www.nclabor.com/wh/fact%20sheets/garnishments.htm

Him and I both lived (and still live) in the same county in NC so jurisdiction should not be an issue. I realize the judgment will still be intact if he moves, but other than him willingly paying, best I can tell there is no way for me to get money from him at all once he moves - unless there is something I'm missing.

The link on wage garnishment is interesting, but I would think I fall into the second category under personal debt, so I don't think I can garnish wages

HKnight, I do know where he banks, but keep in mind there is likely to be a small sum of money in the account (I would guess no more than $500) so wouldn't I not be able to touch that as his total assets are under the amount NC lets you protect - or is cash a special case?

NC may be a special case, but generally I believe that any and all moneys in a bank account are fair game, unless he can show that they are exempt, like SSI payments, somebody else's money, etc. You'd serve the bank with the proper papers, and they'd freeze the account and notify the account holder. The bad news is the bank gets to take out their fees before they pay you, and if the judgment debtor has half a brain he won't put more money in that bank for you to grab again. If you know when he gets paid, you might be able to get most of his paycheck before any of the checks he writes clear the bank.

Try to get the debt put onto his credit report. I know that you can do this in NYC small claims court after you win a judgment. YMMV, however, especially as we can garnish wages here in NYC.

Generally the bureaus pick up the public record electronically you should not need to do anything...The judgement will show...

ES

darkmeridian said:Try to get the debt put onto his credit report. I know that you can do this in NYC small claims court after you win a judgment. YMMV, however, especially as we can garnish wages here in NYC.

how did the debt get so big?....

Why?

It was only 35 bucks or so...and an afternoon in court....He has 10 years now to try and collect this and he may be able to renew it for 10 more years in NC...not sure...But this deadbeat might get some assets in the next 10 or 20 years...and the bureau report might protect other creditors from him...It's was the OP's civic duty...hehe

Do not forget to file an Abstract of Judgement in the county he lives in OP...

By the way the NC legal interest rate is 8%....you can add that...and update it with a memorandom to the court clerk once a year...

ES

peachywink said:IMHO, If you knew his situation, it was silly to let the debt get that high and even sillier to sue when you knew there was no way you would get paid.

couldn't you just garnish his checking account right after he gets paid?

Then when he closes and opens a new one find out which bank it's at and garnish that again after payday? Just keep repeating until you get your $$$?

I say wait. If you push it now some cheapo bankruptcy attorney might be able to wipe it. Let him get farther along in life with a better car and job, then show up in about 5 years and collect.