Person who failed to pay promissory note has moved out of state. Have address, what are my options?

Question

A person that I lent money has moved out of state. The promisssory note is now past due. I have his address. I would like to know what my options are and if there is a statute of limitations on the note.

Answer 1

The statute of limitations varies from state to state but averages 3 years. It will start running from the date the latest payment was due but not paid, or from the date the note should have been paid off.

As a general rule you can sue a person where he makes a contract, or where he lives. If the note was signed in your state, you can sue in your state, but you must get service of the court summons on the person you're suing where he lives or works. (In other words, you can sue him in your state even if he doesn't live in your state any more.) If you sue in your state and win, the next step is to sue again (sorry!) in the state where the borrower lives, and file, as part of the second lawsuit, the judgment you got in the first lawsuit. The second court, the one in the state where the borrower lives, is obligated by the US Constitution to enforce the judgment of the first court by issuing its own judgment that conforms to the first one. Once you get a judgment in the second state, where the borrower lives, you can enforce it by garnishment of wages or by attachment of assets such as a car or bank account. But you can't enforce the judgment of your own state against someone living in another state, unless you also get a judgment in the other state.

You can shorten this process by going personally to the second state and suing the borrower there, but this means you must also go back there for the trial, and later, maybe also to file the necessary papers to enforce the judgment. Or you could hire a lawyer in the second state to do that work for you.

You should also report the debt to the credit reporting agencies--this may help you to collect the debt sometime in the future if the borrower applies for a loan somewhere else.

Answer 2

There is a SOL, but it depends upon state law. Since he's moved you can generally use the SOL of the state where the agreement was signed or his state of residence, whichever is longer.

You'll need to sue to recover. If there is security on the note, you can exercise your rights to the security.

Consult with a local attorney if this is a significant amount of money.

Answer 3

A promissory be conscious is a be conscious promissing to pay a definite volume of money (e.g., $4,000) by ability of a particular date. including activity and expenses so as that it is not a definite volume of money takes it exterior the definition of promissory be conscious, regardless of if it can be a legally enforcable settlement. considering the fact which you have been making diverse money, your settlement with him replaced into not in the form of a promissory be conscious. considering the fact that your reproduction has no signatures, in and of itself it does not teach settlement between him and you. different movements including your statements and his, and which you have made some money, artwork to teach settlement. settlement is the main ingredient, no count if in writing or not. in case you settle which you owe the money, pay it as quickly as you are able to. for sure this has long gone on for years, so which you won't be in a position to blame your pal for wanting his money decrease back, yet he does seem being slightly hardnosed approximately it. by ability of all ability, shop records of you cash to him. the availability to bump the be conscious from $4000 to $8000 as defined sounds doubtful. frequently rules do enable for activity and expenses, yet it incredibly is severe. there is an previous asserting that the possibility is worse than the exeution. He probable won't take exterior measures to collect the main suitable few hundred money, yet do pay what you owe him. you additionally can remind him that the quantity of money in touch ability you may desire to rfile activity and expenses paid to the IRS and the state tax authority, so he will could desire to settle the earnings taxes with them. seek for the right varieties on their information superhighway web pages, so it does not sound like hollow bluster, and be arranged to do exactly that. it could desire to cool his jets slightly.