Collecting on a Judgment

You went to court, you won, and you have a judgment in hand. Then nothing happens. The debtor does not pay, and no one shows up to write you a check. This is the moment most creditors get stuck, and it is exactly where our firm helps. Call 212-233-1233 and we will help you collect what the court already awarded you.

A Judgment Does Not Collect Itself

A common misconception is that winning a lawsuit means the money is on its way. In reality, the court does not collect the judgment for you. It is up to the judgment creditor to find the debtor's assets and use the legal process to seize them. A judgment is a license to collect, not a payment.

The First Step Is Finding Assets

You cannot freeze a bank account you cannot identify. The starting point in collecting any judgment is locating the debtor's assets — bank accounts, wages, real estate, vehicles, business income, and money others owe to the debtor. We do this with information subpoenas, which legally compel the debtor and third parties such as banks to tell us where the assets are.

Then We Seize Them

Once we know where the assets are, we use New York's enforcement tools to reach them:

• A restraining notice and bank levy to freeze and collect money in the debtor's accounts
• An income execution to garnish an individual debtor's wages
• A property execution to seize and sell non-exempt property
• A judgment lien against real estate the debtor owns

Small Claims and Other Courts

If you won a small claims judgment, or a judgment in Civil Court or Supreme Court, and have not been paid, the same enforcement process applies. Many people who represent themselves in small claims succeed in getting a judgment but have no idea how to collect it. We can step in and handle enforcement.

How Long You Have

A money judgment in New York is enforceable for twenty years and accrues interest at nine percent per year. Even a judgment that has sat unpaid for years may still be collectible, often with substantial accrued interest added to the balance.

To start collecting on your judgment, call 212-233-1233 or email [email protected].