Can I sue her?

Question

I live in Wisconsin - last year I lent my best friend $550 (a rather stupid thing to do now that I think about it). She still owes $300 and we are no longer friends and I'm pretty sure she has no intention of paying it back. I never had her sign anything saying I lent it to her. All evidence I have of it is the withdrawal from my savings account, and possibly her bank's records of her putting it into her account (same amount). Could I get anywhere if I took her to court?

Answer 1

For a start you would pay more to the lawyer,You just learned a hard lesson never loan with out having it signed as a lone,and never loan if you cant afford to lose that amount

Answer 2

Dont listen to the first answerer. You can win your case without a written contract. People lend other people money without a written contract all the time, the courts recognize this.
You have a burden to meet. You can take her to small claims court and sue her for the remainder of the money you are seeking.
You will need to prove that you lent her money in the amount of 550$.
You will need to prove that she has paid you the 250 dollars you so claim (I hope she paid you by check, if it was by cash, your case is not doing so well). If you can prove she paid you 250 then you have a strong case because that shows she has initiated a payback which indicates a loan was made.
Once you make your case based off of that evidence, it will be up to the judges discretion on whether or not you have not reached a remedy or if there is even a case.

Again, if she paid you in cash, you probably wont have much of a case because that is often impossible to prove.
You cant get her bank account information, that is illegal. If you show evidence of her bank account information, the judge will most likely condemn you because that is not your information to have and it is extremely sensitive.

Chances are you will have to mark this one down for experience, dont loan money without a contract of some sort, whether its on a napkin or a sheet of paper, these things need to be written down if you believe there is a chance of non-repayment. Good luck.

Answer 3

I am a Wisconsin attorney and can tell you that what you have is a small claims action that is very easy to do by yourself. (In legal terms you have a claim in equity against your friend for non-payment of money that she borrowed from you.)

You will need to prove to the court that you did in fact lend the money to your friend. You do not need a contract, however, it will then come down to your testimony or other documentation and hers. If she disputes that you ever lent her money, then the small claims judge has to determine who is more credible as a witness.

I can say that the fee to file in Milwaukee County is just under a $100. You will then need to get her served with a process server and that runs about $40 on up depending on how many times they attempt service. That is about $140 to get started and you may not win depending on your evidence, etc. You will need to make a decision on what to do based upon this information.

Answer 4

Yes, small claims is the right court.

If she lies about everything totally, it's about who is more credible (though it could help if there are other people you told about the loan at the times it was made or partially paid back). If there's truly no evidence of any loan or transfers of money, it will be hard, unless you just seem a lot more believable than she.

But do you think she's prepared to lie under oath about everything? Maybe she will admit enough to tip the scale in your favor.

Answer 5

It's a close case, but you might be able to convince a small claims judge that you loaned her the money. If the balance is only $300, you might have some evidence of the payments that she did make and that will go a long way to help you prove your case.

Answer 6

Probably not. There was no agreement signed, and you will most likely spend more money on lawyer fees and court costs than you will ever get out of your friend. You will end up losing money. Try to put it behind you and move on.

Answer 7

Unfortunately not, unless you have some written proof that says you did in fact lend her the money. Bank transactions are insufficient b/c her "deposit" could've came from anywhere.

Answer 8

Sounds like a perfect case for Judge Judy! http://www.judgejudy.com/SubmitCase/submitcase.asp

Answer 9

you might be able to take her to small clam's court.. you need proof.. did she pay you by check or in cash .. if in cash its going to be hard ... you have to show she attempted to pay it back at one time and stopped ..if not take her anyway the judge might like your story better ....crooks are getting away with this type of crime all the time .. the judge might rule in your favor ... good luck

Answer 10

no sugar coating sweetheart friend or not you should have made her sign something. but if you are confident in yourself and have the statements and are able to present why she borrowed then you have a good shot of winning.