Litigation is time consuming and expensive.  Well-worded contracts and standardized terms and conditions have proven effective in limiting or even disclaiming liability in certain commercial transactions.  Small business owners can also define venue to avoid trial in a foreign jurisdiction or even limit resolution to arbitration in an effort to avoid the uncertainty of a jury trial.  

One of your first orders of business for 2009 should be to "tune-up" your contracts and implement standardized terms and conditions.  Call us today to discuss these and other important litigation avoidance strategies.   

Suppose you obtain a judgment for money damages, either following trial or by default, what's next?  Most likely, the judgment debtor isn't going to hand you a check on the way out of the courthouse.  And should the debtor claim he/she is unable to pay the judgment, you would be well served to verify this information.  Enter the Citation to Discover Assets.

Creditors must obtain leave of court to issue a Citation to Discover Assets and the judgment debtor needs to be advised of his/her rights.  The Citation is held under oath and usually in the presence of a court reporter.  During the Citation, the judgment debtor will be required to produce copies of documents evidencing their financial condition.  These usually include tax returns, bank statements and any other information regarding assets owned by the debtor.  Once identified, the creditor can move to lien the debtor's property and eventually seek a turnover order from the court, thus effectively taking control of the given assets.  

Harsh penalties are possible for judgment debtors who fail to to comply with court orders setting Citations, so it is a post-judgment tool with teeth.

Contact us today for a free consultation at 312-419-9599 to discuss your collection issues.   

The Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois has announced that a pilot program implementing electronic filing is to begin March 30, 2009.  Other counties have already implemented similar electronic filing programs and it has been used in federal courts since 2000.  The implications of allowing electronic filing are clear when it comes to the substantial time and cost savings lawyers will realize.   

The Roth Law Group will participate in the E-Filing Advisory/Leadership Committee begining January 8, 2009.  It is hoped that the plan will be approved and gain wide acceptance (or mandatory compliance) in order to move the Clerk's office into the 21st Century.