Suing person with unknown address
December 28, 2011 2:37 PM Subscribe
Is it possible to sue someone for services rendered if you don't have their address?
I performed some work for a young couple and long story short, they have skipped out on paying off the balance and have moved away. Why do I want to sue in absentia rather than take the loss? Mainly for the principle and also apparently once you have a judgement you can report it to the credit bureaus. Is this true? How could I go about doing this (suing etc) ? And by the way could I press charges? Is this a prosecutable offense?
I performed some work for a young couple and long story short, they have skipped out on paying off the balance and have moved away. Why do I want to sue in absentia rather than take the loss? Mainly for the principle and also apparently once you have a judgement you can report it to the credit bureaus. Is this true? How could I go about doing this (suing etc) ? And by the way could I press charges? Is this a prosecutable offense?
A couple of comments:
(1) These are questions best answered by a lawyer, not random strangers on the internet.
(2) If you can sue a lawyer would be able to tell you how you can sue people for whom you have no contact information.
(3) Lawsuits are expensive affairs. Don't sue for the principle of the matter. Sue because you are owed a sufficiently large amount, that suing would be worth it. Else write it off as a loss and move on.
posted by dfriedman at 2:39 PM on December 28, 2011 [2 favorites]
(1) These are questions best answered by a lawyer, not random strangers on the internet.
(2) If you can sue a lawyer would be able to tell you how you can sue people for whom you have no contact information.
(3) Lawsuits are expensive affairs. Don't sue for the principle of the matter. Sue because you are owed a sufficiently large amount, that suing would be worth it. Else write it off as a loss and move on.
posted by dfriedman at 2:39 PM on December 28, 2011 [2 favorites]
It's also pretty crucial to know what country/jurisdiction you're in.
posted by no regrets, coyote at 2:46 PM on December 28, 2011
posted by no regrets, coyote at 2:46 PM on December 28, 2011
How could I go about doing this (suing etc) ? And by the way could I press charges? Is this a prosecutable offense?
You'll need to provide a location/jurisdiction for anyone to be able to answer these questions. If you are talking about America, debtor's prison does not exist anymore. Most debt is a civil matter and the police will not get involved. Small claims court might be the place to go, depending on the size of the money owed. Read your local court's website.
posted by soelo at 2:49 PM on December 28, 2011
You'll need to provide a location/jurisdiction for anyone to be able to answer these questions. If you are talking about America, debtor's prison does not exist anymore. Most debt is a civil matter and the police will not get involved. Small claims court might be the place to go, depending on the size of the money owed. Read your local court's website.
posted by soelo at 2:49 PM on December 28, 2011
Best answer: I am an attorney, but I am not your attorney. This is not legal advice.
You should consult a competent attorney in your jurisdiction. There are many potential issues and approaches here (e.g. the availability of indirect service of process, using databases or hiring a PI to locate the defendants). A lawyer can advise you on the cost, practicality, and wisdom of these varied approaches. He or she can also advise you regarding what you kind of default judgment you could possibly receive, if any, which may or may not be worth the trouble.
And by the way could I press charges? Is this a prosecutable offense?
A lawyer could advise you on whether the defendants may have committed a crime, whether and how you could file a criminal complaint, and whether the prosecutor is likely to act on it.
posted by jedicus at 2:51 PM on December 28, 2011
You should consult a competent attorney in your jurisdiction. There are many potential issues and approaches here (e.g. the availability of indirect service of process, using databases or hiring a PI to locate the defendants). A lawyer can advise you on the cost, practicality, and wisdom of these varied approaches. He or she can also advise you regarding what you kind of default judgment you could possibly receive, if any, which may or may not be worth the trouble.
And by the way could I press charges? Is this a prosecutable offense?
A lawyer could advise you on whether the defendants may have committed a crime, whether and how you could file a criminal complaint, and whether the prosecutor is likely to act on it.
posted by jedicus at 2:51 PM on December 28, 2011
IANAL, but don't you have to serve defendants in a lawsuit?
They have to know they're being sued, so that they can respond. (That they're trying to avoid doing so is beside the point.)
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 2:59 PM on December 28, 2011
They have to know they're being sued, so that they can respond. (That they're trying to avoid doing so is beside the point.)
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 2:59 PM on December 28, 2011
Best answer: You can sue someone without knowing where they live, but you need to be able to serve them with process, so you will eventually need to be able to find them physically. Note that knowing where they live is not required, just that you be able to locate them long enough to serve the process. You could run across them at a convenience store, serve them with process, and then knowing where they live wouldn't matter.
In my state, finding someone for process service can go on for quite a while -- you just have to get the summons re-issued if it's not served within a statutory period. You have to make sure you've filed the lawsuit within the statute of limitations period.
posted by jayder at 3:07 PM on December 28, 2011
In my state, finding someone for process service can go on for quite a while -- you just have to get the summons re-issued if it's not served within a statutory period. You have to make sure you've filed the lawsuit within the statute of limitations period.
posted by jayder at 3:07 PM on December 28, 2011
Best answer: Check with the Post Office for a forwarding address.
Go to the clerk of your local Small Claims Court for free advice and assistance.
There are numerous skip-tracing services, but 99% of the ones you find on the net are scams. Go to a process server, who will know the reliable sources.
posted by KRS at 5:18 PM on December 28, 2011
Go to the clerk of your local Small Claims Court for free advice and assistance.
There are numerous skip-tracing services, but 99% of the ones you find on the net are scams. Go to a process server, who will know the reliable sources.
posted by KRS at 5:18 PM on December 28, 2011
You don't need a lawyer to make a case in small claims, and if they don't show up, you can get a default judgement.
posted by empath at 6:47 PM on December 28, 2011
posted by empath at 6:47 PM on December 28, 2011
But even in small claims, you still have to serve them, don't you?
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 7:08 PM on December 28, 2011
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 7:08 PM on December 28, 2011
Yes, Chocolate Pickle, even in small claims, they would have to be served. But most jurisdictions have rules allowing you to proceed when it is impossible to serve the defendant because the defendant is avoiding process or otherwise cannot be found. A lawyer, legal aid service and sometimes the court itself can assist with that.
posted by crush-onastick at 7:28 PM on December 28, 2011
posted by crush-onastick at 7:28 PM on December 28, 2011
Response by poster: Thank you all for your answers an suggestions. I will be consulting a lawyer but he's out of the country for the holidays. I am a little pissed and annoyed at the moment and just needed some outside perspective. Just to give some feedback ...they owe me about 4k 'market value' for my work but i am actually out my time and about 2700 materials cost which I have to pay. My time is a loss I will have to live with but the materials cost is a different story. I'm in Rochester, NY and I think the max for Small Claims here is below that.
posted by carlsdad at 7:38 PM on December 28, 2011
posted by carlsdad at 7:38 PM on December 28, 2011
In New York State, you can sue in small claims court for up to $5,000.00.
posted by soelo at 7:52 AM on December 30, 2011
posted by soelo at 7:52 AM on December 30, 2011
soelo: " If you are talking about America, debtor's prison does not exist anymore."
I worked for a debt collection attorney for the last year and I assure you, if people made no effort to make any payments on their bills (we had clients ranging from hospitals to video rental stores), the court would eventually put out a bench warrant for their arrest and occasionally, the police would seek them out to arrest them. I stress that the judge did this and not my boss.
posted by IndigoRain at 8:16 PM on December 31, 2011
I worked for a debt collection attorney for the last year and I assure you, if people made no effort to make any payments on their bills (we had clients ranging from hospitals to video rental stores), the court would eventually put out a bench warrant for their arrest and occasionally, the police would seek them out to arrest them. I stress that the judge did this and not my boss.
posted by IndigoRain at 8:16 PM on December 31, 2011
IndigoRain, I did some searching and I see how wrong I am! Wikipedia says that six states "allow debt collectors to seek arrest warrants for debtors in default if all other collection methods have failed." New York is not on the list, but a Wall Street Journal article says "More than a third of all U.S. states allow borrowers who can't or won't pay to be jailed." and I don't see a list of which ones do and don't.
When I said debtor's prison, I was thinking more of a long-term incarceration that lasted until you paid your debt, but most of what I have read sounded like it was an arrest, possible jail time and some financial disclosure.
posted by soelo at 9:31 PM on January 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
When I said debtor's prison, I was thinking more of a long-term incarceration that lasted until you paid your debt, but most of what I have read sounded like it was an arrest, possible jail time and some financial disclosure.
posted by soelo at 9:31 PM on January 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
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posted by facetious at 2:38 PM on December 28, 2011