Potential Sources of Litigation Surrounding Hydraulic Fracturing Throughout Haynesville Shale

The Haynesville Shale is an informal name for a rock formation that underlies large parts of southwest Arkansas, northwest Louisiana, and east Texas. It is part of a large rock formation known as the Haynesville Formation. The Haynesville Shale underlies an area of about 9,000 square miles and averages about 200 to 300 feet thick. It contains vast quantities of recoverable natural gas, often referred to as "shale gas." Haynesville Shale is an important shale gas resource in East Texas and Louisiana. It has recently been estimated to be the largest natural gas field in the contiguous 48 states with an estimated 250 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas. It came into prominence in 2008 as a potential major shale gas resource. Though it was known to contain large quantities of natural gas prior to 2008, it was uneconomic to extract the natural gas at that time. However, as a result of rising gas prices and improved technology, i.e., hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, it has become possible to extract gas from the Haynesville Shale in a cost-effective manner.

Hydraulic fracturing, commonly referred to as "fracing" or "fracking," is the now widely publicized process whereby natural gas and oil producers are able to recover natural gas and oil from deep shale formations. It typically involves millions of gallons of fluid that are pumped into an oil or gas well at high pressure to create fractures in the rock formation that allow oil or gas to flow from the fractures to the wellbore. Fracturing fluid is roughly 99% water but also contains numerous chemical additives as well as "propping" agents, such as sands, that are used to keep fractures open once they are produced under pressure. The chemicals added to fracturing fluid include substances referred to as friction reducers, surfactants, gelling agents, scale inhibitors, acids, corrosion inhibitors, antibacterial agents, and clay stabilizers. Depending on the site, 15-80% of the fracturing fluid injected is recovered as "flowback" water at the well head. In addition, a considerable amount of water that comes to the surface, often called "produced" water, over the lifetime of the well is highly saline water that originates deep underground in the shale formation.

Although significant risks are commonly associated with hydraulic fracturing, the process has substantially increased the extraction of natural gas from unconventional sources. The Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) estimates that hydraulic fracturing is used to stimulate production in 90% of domestic oil and gas wells, though shale and other unconventional gas recovery utilizes hydraulic fracturing to a much greater extent than conventional gas development does. Furthermore, horizontal wells, which may extend two miles from the well pad, are estimated to be 2-3 times more productive than conventional vertical wells, and see an even greater increase in production from hydraulic fracturing. The alternative to hydraulic fracturing is to drill more vertical wells in an area, a solution that is often economically or geographically prohibitive. Nevertheless, despite its efficiency, the sudden increase in the utilization of hydraulic fracturing is beginning to face intense scrutiny from state and federal lawmakers, environmental agencies, and public interest groups. This scrutiny has led to multiple sources of litigation throughout areas near the Haynesville and Marcellus shale formations.

The most widely publicized potential litigation associated with hydraulic fracturing is that of contamination to local drinking water sources. Approximately 44 million Americans rely on private water supplies for household and agricultural use, typically sourced from shallow aquifers. In areas of extensive shale gas drilling, some homeowners have claimed that hydraulic fracturing has contaminated their drinking-water wells with methane and waste waters. Shale gas is typically comprised of over 90% methane. The migration of methane gas to nearby private drinking water wells is a concern with hydraulic fracturing and natural gas in general. In Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, for example, a group of residents recently brought an action against a Texas company conducting hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling near their property along the Marcellus Shale. According to their complaint, pollutants and other industrial waste, including fracturing fluid and other hazardous chemicals, were negligently discharged into the ground as a result of insufficient casings on one or more of the wells, resulting in contamination of the local water supply. Though the court has yet to issue a ruling directly on liability, the case demonstrates water contamination as a clear potential source of litigation.

The risks of water contamination have also led to a clash between oil and natural gas companies and state and federal regulators regarding public disclosure of the chemicals and additives found in fracturing fluid. This has catalyzed a second related potential source of litigation concerning the applicability of trade secret protection. On June 23, 2001, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced seven case studies to help inform the assessment of potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources. Two of the case study sites are in Louisiana and Texas. In the Haynesville Shale area, the EPA plans to monitor the hydraulic fracturing process before construction and throughout the process of drilling in order to assess existing sites for possible drinking water contamination and attempt to determine possible pathways for contamination to reach water resources. It should be noted that before this study, drinking water aquifers in cases like the one mentioned above, from Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, were not tested for contamination prior to hydraulic fracturing taking place near the aquifer.

This study coincides with regulations recently passed in Texas and Louisiana under which companies performing hydraulic fracturing must report to state agencies and/or publicly accessible registries the composition and volumes of fracturing fluid. Louisiana regulations, officially adopted on October 20, 2011, require companies to report a list of chemical ingredients contained in hydraulic fracturing fluid, unless the specific identity of a chemical ingredient is determined to be entitled to protection as a trade secret under Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards. This regulatory scheme only requires disclosure of fracturing fluid composition after its initial use. This could become a source of litigation expense for oil and natural gas companies operating in the Haynesville Shale region. As it currently reads, the recently promulgated regulations invite litigation over the classification of fracturing fluid components as chemical ingredients entitled to trade secret protection under Title 29 Section 1910.1200(i) of the Code of Federal Regulations.

Lastly, a third and arguably the most pervasive source of litigation associated with the sudden increase in the utilization of hydraulic fracturing throughout the Haynesville Shale concerns the sustainability of aquifers in the region. As noted above, the fracturing process involves pumping millions of gallons of water into a well. Despite drawing unprecedented amounts of natural gas to the surface, withdrawing millions of gallons of groundwater out of aquifers for each of several hundred, and eventually several thousand, natural gas wells located in a handful of parishes in northwestern Louisiana has allegedly put a worrisome strain on the aquifers in the region. Many of the groundwater aquifers in the Haynesville Shale area, especially those surrounding Shreveport, the largest city in the region and the hub of oil and gas activity, have been facing uncertain or decreasing water levels for years. From the moment the first few wells were drilled, various parties in Louisiana began to anticipate the inevitable clash between the enormous water use requirements of fracturing operations and the communities relying on the already fragile aquifers. Unlike the first two potential sources of litigation, however, the sustainability of aquifers in the regions surrounding hydraulic fracturing is an issue without significant legal precedent. Thus, the costs of potential litigation become difficult to ascertain.

It is important to note that the above mentioned potential sources of litigation are by no means exhaustive. They simply represent some of the key issues surrounding hydraulic fracturing that have risen to the forefront of the debate surrounding the potential costs and benefits of an increasingly publicized and ever-growing source of energy production throughout the United States. When you consider the potential of such enormous yields of oil and natural gas from the Haynesville Shale, these issues become glaringly prevalent. As such, they provide a window into the future for not only oil and natural gas companies within the region, but their defense counsel as well.

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How Does HIPAA Impact Discovery?

With the rise of modern technology, the ways in which we process and retrieve information has changed dramatically. The medical field has been one of the most affected, and with the ability to rapidly share information, the need to protect this information has grown exponentially. The United States was able to keep up with the needs of its citizens by passing the Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). This act essentially changed medical record retrieval for medical professionals, legal professionals, and the law.

HIPAA protects every American from having their information shared or discovered by a variety of individuals. Even the deceased are protected under these high tech HIPAA laws. This is a federal regulation, and every state must comply with the HIPAA guidelines for medical record retrieval, and only have the option of having more protection for their citizens. HIPAA also protects the transfer and sharing of all medical documents regardless if they are transferred via high tech methods or more organic means.

One of the most important areas of medical record retrieval that these HIPAA laws protect is the discovery of these documents by third party sources. Sometimes, in order to proceed in a court case or hearing, medical records are needed to prove truth or to be used as evidence. HIPAA high tech retrieval as well as old-fashioned methods, in terms of discovery, is covered by the same regulations and guidelines, and the fines for violating these rules are severe and can exceed over a million dollars.

Legal professionals who need to access medical records for court proceedings have to use special rules and procedures to obtain these records. In order to get these HIPAA records via high tech or other means, generally a lawyer or judge must fill out a HIPAA authorization form. This form ensures that anyone attempting medical record retrieval has the proper information, intention, as well as permission to access the medical records. This documentation also requires legal need, such as a subpoena to ensure the safety of the person's records that are being retrieved. Though the discovery of medical documentation is affected by HIPAA enforcement, whether said discovery occurs via high tech means or not, it helps keep patients safe from harm and also helps maintain privacy.

HIPAA is something that may have made life a little more difficult, especially for those in legal professions, but it has also made life much safer. With the rise of the modern age, privacy is a concept that many do not understand anymore. However, with the development of HIPAA, medical records retrieval has become private and safe again so that citizens of the United States can rest at ease knowing their information is safe. Making sure that the discovery of these records is regulated as well simply adds to the safety and security that HIPAA provides for patients, and knowing how to retrieve this information should you need to is also important for avoiding fines and making sure that information is secure and protected.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Legal Support Services: What Can a Business Gain From an Experienced Provider?   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   4 Civil Summons Mistakes to Avoid   Which Judgments Should You Take?   

Court Reporting: The Importance of Accuracy

Legal situations can be some of the most unpleasant and unwanted experiences in our lives. Making sure that these experiences are stress-free for everyone involved is crucial for the success of any case. Ensuring the best services surround you and your legal team is important, especially in the case of court reporting. Court reporting supplies your case with a record of not only what has happened in the courtroom, but also within the individual meetings and other events during the time of your case. It is important to have this record as accurate as possible.

Reporting accuracy can make or break a case. Many types of meetings and events will happen prior to an actual trial depending on what type of case you have. Lawyers who use these reporters for their clients want to make sure they get the record straight. These records are often used in a later case for evidence and to review and learn from, to win a future case you will fight. Having an inaccurate record can make your case false and completely ruin your chance at winning anything that you are fighting for, and it could destroy your credibility as a law professional. Having accurate reporting for your firm or case will ensure that you never run into a situation where you will need to defend the credibility of your record.

Accurate court reporting is also much easier to obtain and guarantee than you might think. Many companies provide court reporting services for various types of cases and the different needs of law firms. These companies train and screen their employees that they will provide for your business to make sure that they are fit to serve your firm and your case with integrity. Outsourcing these services saves time on having to hire and train someone on your own because these companies do all of the hard work for you. On top of saving you time, these companies guarantee their services are as accurate as possible so you do not have to worry about anything but the running of your case.

Accuracy in court reporting can help keep you working at your best. Being able to do what you need to do and focus your attention on areas of the case that need your legal expertise will be easier for you because you will not have to worry about your accuracy. Being able to revisit accurate documents will help you to be able to build the best possible case that you can so that you will be successful in whatever legal undertaking that you are trying to accomplish.

Court reporting services and reporting in general are a crucial need to every case, regardless if it is a criminal defense case or just a simple lawsuit or property closing. Making sure that these records are transcribed in an accurate fashion can be what wins your case, and what makes winning your case easier for you and your entire legal team. Hiring outside services ensures you will benefit from accurate court reporting brought to your business.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   4 Civil Summons Mistakes to Avoid   Which Judgments Should You Take?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   

Video Forensics: Standard Operating Procedures

There is a set of procedures all forensic experts follow in order to show that their investigation and forensic work is acceptable in the scientific community. Without these standard operating procedures, our courts and legal systems will get bogged down by bogus forensic experts who provide bogus information in litigation.

Following the practices and procedures of forensic investigation as accepted in the scientific community requires the forensic examiner to be trained on many levels of forensic investigation. For example, software programs that aid in the forensic examination are complicated. Training programs both written and on video help forensic examiners learn how to use and apply these software tools when conducting forensic examinations.

In the following article, I will describe the processes I often use as an audio video forensic expert as well as the tools that aid in my investigations. I wrote this article about digital and analogue video clarification to help the lay person better understand the audio/video forensic examination and investigation process.

Many video recordings are submitted to me for forensics examination. More often than not, the quality of these recordings is below optimal. Operator error or inferior equipment often contributes to poor quality video.

Essentially, video clarification is the process used to address these less-than-ideal video conditions-to produce a sharpened, enhanced video product.

Our Mac and PC based forensic video processes allow us to break a video down into its original components and enhance picture quality and sound.

The components are adjusted and then realigned, resulting in a clearer, crisper image. Once the video has been loaded into our computer, we can then adjust gamma color tints and intensity, ratio of black to white to grey tones, chroma, and other video attributes, plus sound-quality attributes.

Note that no video clarification steps used by a video forensic expert will cause damage to the original recordings. Maintaining the integrity of an original videotape is, of course, of paramount importance.

I want to stress the importance of using original video recordings in all litigation because originals have the better quality than copies and because originals that have an established chain of custody are mandatory for court use instead of copies. Although the copy is showing the same image, the information contained on the video recording will never be as valuable as the original. Original videos outside the court room are referred to as "Full Quality Files".

If you have any questions about original video vs. copies in a court proceeding, call us for a pro bono phone conversation. If you believe that your audio or video evidence is not authentic, then you should consider contacting a forensic expert who can help guide you in obtaining an original copy of the evidence that is being used in your court proceeding. Ask the forensic expert for a copy of their curriculum vita so you can see their experience and even contact some of their references.

In all instances-litigation and other publishing uses-working with the original recording always produces superior results. The master recording has integrity in litigation and is much higher quality than a copy. If a video clarification process is necessary, mine is second to none.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   Which Judgments Should You Take?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   

Lazy Judgment Enforcers

I am not a lawyer, I am a Judgment and Collections Broker. This article is my opinion. If you ever need legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

Every day, we get at least one phone call from someone that owns a judgment, that is "sick and tired of lazy judgment enforcers".

For example, today someone called, and said they have had their million dollar judgment with three different judgment enforcers and one contingency collection lawyer, and none of them made any progress "because they are all lazy".

When we asked about their judgment debtor, the reason for their repeated experience became clear. Their debtor was a world-class scammer, that had deeply hidden their assets, and "all you have to do is find out where they hid it". That is the problem.

When the economy was booming, it was fairly easy to find contingency experts or buyers who would work on pure contingency, fronting massive amounts of time and money chasing frauds that had hidden their assets.

In a down economy, most enforcers, contingency lawyers, and contingency collection agencies, have become very picky about which judgments they will work on a pure contingency basis.

Put yourself in the enforcer's shoes: You are offering them a million dollar judgment against a 72-year old man with deeply hidden assets.

Two other enforcers tried before to recover it, however they "did nothing". They both told you they did not want to spend any more money trying to recover your judgment.

Now, your offer (that no enforcer is willing to take) is: "You can recover my judgment - if you will agree to pure contingency, constantly update me with your progress reports, and should you not make real progress, return it to me within two years."

What is wrong with your offer? Your judgment is very difficult - and you are asking for the enforcer to spend a large amount of their own time and money upfront, and agree to your special conditions and time limits.

Ignoring for now, that time limits might be considered bailment in some places, and that most enforcers will not allow you to micro-manage them; the real show stopper is the judgment debtor's assets are "deeply hidden".

Most often, when you think a judgment enforcer is lazy, it means there is not an obvious or reasonable way to recover any debtor assets to satisfy the judgment.

When times were good, there was an assumption of upward mobility that made judgment buyers willing to take more risks. The economy has affected judgment enforcers as much as most other businesses. Most judgment enforcers are now becoming very conservative.

Also during good times, sneaky judgment debtors would sometimes carelessly spend money on things that left records. Now, even rich and sneaky debtors, are laying low because they know hungry creditors are after their assets.

The economy has caused most judgment buyers to go out of business, and the few that are left, will buy judgments for more than three cents on the dollar when the debtor has deeply hidden their assets.

If your debtor has deeply hidden their assets, and nobody will buy, or wants to try to enforce your judgment on a contingency basis, you might want to first, hire a private investigator to find some of those hidden assets.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   Which Judgments Should You Take?   

What Are Court Reporting Agencies?

When it comes to legal matters and cases, many different people and steps go into creating a successful experience. Lawyers and legal teams ensure your case is handled professionally, but other individuals who are involved in the process are just as crucial to its success. These professionals provide legal services such as court reporting. Court reporting is one of the most important assets to any case, but finding individuals to take care of this task is not always easy. There are now agencies that specialize in providing services such as reporting to legal professionals, and because these individuals are outsourced, they have the potential to bring endless benefit to your business.

One of the most important benefits that these professionals bring to your company is accuracy. In all legal services, having accurate and correct information is critical. These court reporting agencies hire employees who are screened and checked for their reliability and then trained so that they can provide you and your team with accurate and precise reporting. Having the ability to save time and energy on hiring and training an additional employee you will allow you to focus on the things that matter in order for you and your firm to have a successful case. These companies make sure that your hired reporters are the best in the industry and that they will help to make your case a winning one.

Outsourcing your legal services can also assist you in making sure that you have the information that you need in order to build your best possible case. Having one of these hired professionals around and available during the duration of your case will help you keep an accurate and precise record of exactly what has occurred in each and every meeting that you have had in relation to your case. Being able to look back and know exactly what was said and what happened would allow you to use the maximum amount of resources available to build the winning case that you are after.

Court reporting agencies can also provide you with speed. Being accurate and available is important when it comes to creating a record for your case, but being able to have access to these items quickly is equally important. Timing is everything, especially in legal situations, and having to wait on the court documents that you need may slow down your work and hinder your case. These hired reporters will help you get everything in a timely fashion so that you can focus on winning your case.

Court reporting agencies can provide you and your firm with personnel that will make your entire case experience a more pleasant and hopefully more successful one. These companies provide you with services like reporting and transcription with accuracy, availability, and speed so that your case, whether it is a murder trial or a property closing will be handled at the highest standard to ensure the maximum amount of success.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Which Judgments Should You Take?   

Judgment Assignment

I am not a lawyer, I am a Judgment Broker. This article is my opinion, and not legal advice, based on my experience in California. Laws vary in each state. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer. Most judgments are difficult, expensive, and time-consuming to recover.

When you have a large-sized judgment against a rich debtor that has not, and is not currently trying to hide their assets; it is relatively easy to find a contingency collection lawyer. It is also easy to sell such a judgment situation for cash up-front, or to find a very good judgment enforcer.

When you have an average-sized judgment against an upper-middle class debtor that has hidden some of their assets, or is now trying to hide them, it will be somewhat difficult to find a contingency lawyer. If you can find one, they might work on a partial-contingency basis only, and require you to pay all expenses.

When you have any-sized judgment against a poor debtor; or a tiny to medium-sized judgment against a low to middle-class debtor; it will be impossible to find a lawyer that works on any type of contingency basis.

When you cannot, or choose not to hire a lawyer to recover your judgment on a contingency basis; you have four choices:

1) One can pay a lawyer by the hour, and for every expense, to try to recover your judgment, with no guarantee that you are not throwing in good money after bad.

2) One can sell a judgment for cash up-front, for an average of 1-7% of its face value. In our down economy, when no debtor assets are showing, that price is closer to 1%. If your debtor is rich, one might get a better cash up-front offer.

3) One can assign their judgment to a judgment enforcer, and get paid an average of 50% of whatever might be recovered from your judgment debtor. The judgment enforcer takes over the risk of throwing in good money after bad. If the debtor is rich, one can find better future-payment recovery rates.

4-A) If your debtor is really poor, and/or your judgment is small; especially in certain states and counties, where the laws do not allow assignments of small claims judgments; you may never find an enforcer or a judgment buyer.

4-B) If you cannot find an enforcer, (almost no collection agency can help) try to settle with the judgment debtor for 20-40% of what is owed. If that does not pay off, it is probably best to forget about your judgment, or sell the judgment for anything you can get, perhaps less than 1%.

For most judgment owners that cannot easily find a contingency lawyer; because of either the size of their judgment, or the situation of their debtor; will want to choose option three above, assigning their judgment to a judgment enforcer.

Most judgment enforcers are not lawyers, which means they cannot represent anyone except themselves in court, or give any legal advice, or help anyone with any type of legal matter.

Anyone who is not a lawyer, cannot work for you on any legal matter, for example, recovering a judgment for you, or on your behalf. That means that if the enforcer is not a lawyer, you must assign your judgment to them, before they can try to recover your judgment.

The paperwork required to assign a judgment (which must be notarized) almost always includes the words "assigning all rights, title, and interest in the judgment". Judgment enforcers have a fiduciary duty to split any recoveries made with you, as specified in the contract you signed with them.

There can be a small risk when one assigns a judgment to an enforcer. However, this potential risk is usually tiny for two reasons:

One reason is, if and when money is recovered, it is recovered with permission from, and documentation from the court, and usually also with a civil Sheriff. It is very easy to track the progress (or usually a lack of progress) of any judgment enforcer.

The other reason the risk of judgment assignments are very rarely a problem, is because in this economy, many judgments are never recovered. If your judgment cannot be recovered, what risk was there in assigning your judgment?

Almost always, assigning a judgment is very safe. Using a judgment broker makes this even safer, as judgment brokers screen out most flakes and bad apples. Often, it is the only way to have any chance of recovering some money from a judgment.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Which Judgments Should You Take?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   Legal Support Services: What Can a Business Gain From an Experienced Provider?   

Slow Judgment Enforcers

I am not a lawyer, I am a judgment and debt referral expert (Judgment and Collection Agency Broker). This article is my opinion, based on my experience in California, and laws vary in each state. If you ever need legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

You found, or were referred to, a professional judgment enforcer, collection agency, or a contingency collections lawyer. They were highly recommended to you, yet they have not made any progress on recovering your judgment in a month.

You gave the judgment enforcer valuable information such as where the judgment debtor worked, and the debtor's banking information. However, the "recovery specialist" still has not recovered any of your money. How could they not make any real progress when they have had your judgment for a whole month?

It has been about a month, and when you asked them what they were doing with your judgment, they said there was another levy ahead of theirs, so their wage levy attempt did not work. Or, that they are waiting for the sheriff to serve a levy. Or, that they are still looking for assets. If they are professionals, how come they are not smart enough to get around such small roadblocks and force my debtor to pay?

These kinds of questions show that you do not know the realities of enforcing judgments. It sometimes takes a month for a court to approve a form, or for a sheriff to have time to perform a levy, and anything can happen to prevent or delay success when trying to recover a judgment.

It is rare for any action to recover a judgment to get a cash payout within one month. It can take that long just to get an assignment of judgment filed or other documents back from a court. Often, a demand letter is sent where required by law, or where there is any doubt about having identified the correctly named judgment debtor. Many times there is a 30 day waiting period for the judgment debtor to contest a debt, even a judgment debt.

Yes, I know, a judgment is not just a debt, and perhaps your judgment was not even related to a consumer debt. However, the FDCPA and FCRA laws are so strong, that many enforcers follow them out of habit. Some also follow 30 day waiting periods by habit, and perhaps they are being a bit over-cautious. The laws protecting debtors are so strong, many think that it is better to be too cautious, than not cautious enough.

There is a lot more work, expense, research, and waiting, than meets the eye in judgment recovery. Even if waiting for 30 days, most enforcers are looking for assets or recording liens. Among the many things that can prevent a judgment from being recovered, there are four additional situations that can really slow down a judgment enforcement.

1) A poor debtor - no enforcer can recover assets that are not there.

2) Slow courts and civil sheriffs - are downsizing like crazy and delaying paperwork more than ever before.

3) Discovering available assets takes time. Private Investigator results can take weeks or longer, debtor and third-party exams can take months, or years when debtors and third parties are particularly stubborn or hard to serve.

4) Debtors that do not care about anything may slow recovery down, because only legal methods can be used to recover judgments. Some debtors do not care if their driving license gets suspended, if there are civil warrants for their arrest, liens on their upside down property, or that a judgment shows up on their credit report. When served, some debtors do not care or show up at court, and in many places, contempt of civil court has no repercussions for judgment debtors.

Often, judgment owners that want help recovering their judgment have previously tried to recover it themselves first. You may have already tried to levy the judgment debtor's wages and bank account, and spent lots of time and money with little or no result. Do not be shocked if a judgment enforcer later tries the same actions, and again gets very little results, because there are few cost-effective tools one can use to recover a judgment.

Most (especially screened) judgment enforcers are very good, and have a long term record of recovering judgments. The problem usually is, you have a difficult or broke debtor. Judgment Enforcers are not magicians, they can only use legal methods to recover judgments, and sometimes re-trying steps you took in the past, cannot be avoided.

When there is another ongoing wage levy ahead of your levy attempt, your levy will not attach. When a debtor does not care if their license is suspended, what can be done? If you catch them driving without a license and report this to a police officer, and even if the debtor gets in trouble, that will not help get your judgment paid.

When a debtor has no available assets showing, the best judgment enforcer in the world usually will not make progress, especially on small judgments where the debtor is down on their luck, poor, does not care, or hides their assets.

If you got your judgment back from the judgment enforcer (they re-assigned the judgment back to you), it is unlikely you, or another judgment enforcer, could recover your judgment any faster. Judgment enforcers only get paid if they recover your money, so often the problem is with your judgment debtor.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   

The Problem With Big Judgments

I am not a lawyer, I am a Judgment and Collection Agency Broker. This article is my opinion, based on my experience in California. If you ever need legal advice, please contact a lawyer.

When the word judgment is used in this article, it means judgment or debts. When enforcer or recovery specialist is used, it means professionals in the debt or judgment recovery business, including lawyers.

Judgments are usually more powerful than debts, and almost every civil judgment for money, begins life as a debt.

Most new judgment owners or enforcers are way too impressed by most big-dollar face value judgments. The dollar amount of a judgment has nothing to do with the chances that it will be recovered. The debtor's situation is 95% of any judgment recovery. The exception is very small judgments, because smaller judgments are usually easier to recover.

A $100 judgment against Apple computer might be worth $100 (less if you pay a professional to recover it). A million dollar judgment against an old homeless alcoholic is probably worth nothing.

Even when the debtor has assets, the bigger the judgment, the less chance there is that cheap enforcement techniques will work, and the more chance the debtor will attempt to take actions to drive up costs and/or prevent recovery.

In many cases, once a debtor thinks they will be sued, or you get a judgment against them, they have already moved, hid, gave away, or transferred their assets.

Many times, the best scoundrels hide assets in people's names that they (e.g.) knew in high school, that a creditor will never learn about. Sometimes they are in such a hurry, they make a mistake, and that could open the door for a future judgment recovery.

In the case of big judgments against scoundrels, sometimes a good enforcer can recover a judgment many years later. Sometimes it is like a long-term chess game. Other times, it becomes an eventual answer to the puzzle of, where did the assets go?

If you take on a big judgment, make sure both you and the original judgment creditor have realistic expectations. Once in a while, a debtor has a lot of assets showing. Even rarer, some debtors have much more assets than is required to recover the judgment.

On regular tough judgments, the contingency charge (fee) is usually 50% of what is recovered, with no costs to the original judgment creditor.

In the rare situation, when the debtors are really rich, stable, and have many assets showing, the fees change, and many enforcers charge less of a percentage.

In my line of work, I see a pattern. A person or entity was not content with merely being well off, and they defrauded people or entities, got sued, and got judgments against them. Years later, usually the debtor (and many people) are not doing as well as they were in the past.

Frauds rarely make wise long-term choices, and the economic decline has made even wise choices now seem foolish. The average fraud has lost more than the average non-fraud. When a debtor is old, gets sick, loses their job, home, or dies; it is usually harder to recover judgments against them.

Clever debtors with assets, usually hide them in other people's names or overseas. Most debtors do not have enough available assets showing to recover a big judgment against them.

While creditors with time and money, might want to annoy a debtor without available assets, any enforcer that works on a contingency basis will give up when there are no possible available assets to satisfy the judgment. Also, laws can change in one way or another, that may make it harder to recover judgments.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   Which Judgments Should You Take?   

Is It Smart To Levy A Security Rental Deposit?

I am not a lawyer, I am a Judgment and Collection Agency Broker. This article is my opinion, based on my experience in California, and laws vary in each state. If you ever need legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

Your judgment debtor is sneaky, and does not have a regular job. You cannot find their bank account, and they seem to work for cash. However, they rent a nice place, and you know they placed a security deposit with the landlord. Can one levy on that rental security deposit? The answer is maybe.

Everything depends on which state, which county, which judge, which debtor, which landlord, and the recovery procedures you already took to recover your judgment.

To levy the debtor's rental security deposit, one would buy a writ of execution from the court, and have a sheriff serve the levy. The levying officer sends the judgment debtor a copy of the memorandum, and serves the third-party levy on the landlord.

The security deposit that a renter paid, is not their sole property, until after the landlord returns it (if any is left) to them. The landlord may own some or all of the deposit, at the end of rental or lease, for unpaid rent, damages, etc.

One might have the landlord served with an order, to levy any money owed to the debtor. However, when the levy is served, there is no money due, because they are still living at the property.

Most of the time, security deposits are not returned to debtors. The debtors will know their security deposit was levied. When debtors move out, they often do not pay their last rent payment, which means the creditor gets nothing. Sometimes the security deposit is simply the first and last month's rent, that also leaves the creditor nothing.

Levying the rental security deposit of commercial renter debtors may work better, because the deposit requirements are higher, with more restrictions.

Levying a rental security deposit is usually a weak enforcement tactic. Often, one gets better results by serving an information subpoena on the landlord, requesting copies of the rental application and the front side of the last check received for the debtor's rent.

That might provide an employment or a banking lead. Of course, some debtors pay with money orders and debit cards. You might find the debtor is a Section Eight tenant, which means the debtor might be judgment-proof.

In California, there is a somewhat vague law, CCP 695.030. Whether this law applies to rental deposits is debatable. If the landlord or another valid party contests your claim, it is best to drop the issue, unless the deposit is worth fighting for in court. Not opposing valid claims, and just dropping them, may be a good general policy.

If you wish to argue in court about your right to your judgment debtor's rental deposit, you might bring up CCP 701.020. Arguably, the security deposit the landlord is holding is, by law, property of the judgment debtor, held by the landlord, and therefore subject to levy. See CCPs 695.010, 699.710, and 1950.5.

The debtor could replace a depleted deposit. If the debtor is sneaky, and you document the other ways you tried to recover the judgment, and showed how the debtor is uncooperative; some judges might approve a rental deposit levy.

There may be one more reason to try to levy a rental security deposit, if you have a policy of not challenging landlords who resist. It may change the landlord's attitude about their debtor renter. There have been cases of debtors paying off judgments within a week of a levy served on the landlord for their security deposit. This is not just a coincidence, however your mileage will vary.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   

Stop Debt Collection Harassment or "What Can Debt Collectors and Creditors Do to You Anyway?"

Why do creditors and debt collectors hassle you? Especially where the debt is "unsecured" (like credit cards, medical bills, past due rent, utility bills); that is, where there is no property or collateral (like a house or a car) standing behind the loan or debt. With some notable exceptions (such as certain student loans and tax debts), there is very little an "unsecured" creditor can do without first suing you and winning the case. Without a lawsuit, they might stop doing business with you, or cancel your account, or report the debt to a credit reporting agency. But, in Illinois and many other states, a creditor or debt collector holding an "unsecured" debt can NOT garnish your wages, attach your bank account, place a lien on your home, take your car, or do anything else without first winning a court case.

Even after winning the lawsuit (assuming that the consumer-debtor has no defenses or counterclaims to assert in the case), the law provides you with certain levels of protection in your wages, home, and personal property. These levels of protection, called "exemptions," are different in each state and some states are more generous than others.

To show how "exemptions" work, let's take the "homestead" exemption. In Illinois, the consumer-debtor may keep, free and clear of creditors (even creditors with a court judgment), the first $15,000 of equity per title holder in a principle residence. Let's say that David and Alice, brother and sister, are buying their home. Further assume that the home has a present, fair market value of $200,000; the outstanding balance on their mortgage is $170,000; and the balance on their second mortgage (home improvement loan) is $10,000. The equity in their home is the difference between fair market value and the value of all mortgages and liens; here, $20,000 ($200,000 - $170,000 - $10,000 = $20,000). Alice's and David's home is completely protected from creditors because all of the equity ($20,000) is covered by the owners' "exemptions" ($30,000); $15,000 for Alice and $15,000 for David. As you can see, Illinois' homestead exemption is, well, comparatively modest. Some states protect the family home at much higher levels of equity (e.g., $100,000), and some states exemption the principle residence altogether, regardless of value.

Individual state exemption laws cover more than the family home. They protect portions of just about every type of income (e.g., wages, pensions, disability) and asset (e.g., cars, clothing, household goods, and bank accounts) imaginable. However, it's important to note that exemptions don't happen automatically. They are usually triggered by the consumer-debtor asserting their rights.

Okay, back to our "unsecured" creditor or debt collector. To avoid the time and cost of a lawsuit, and the uncertainty of collecting on the judgment against your non-exempt assets or income, creditors and debt collectors will try to get you to pay without a lawsuit. Too often, this means repeated phone calls to you, your employer, your friends, relatives, and your neighbors. Sometimes they "sweet-talk" or "brow-beat" you into making unaffordable payments or to pay amounts you don't owe (e.g., debts that are not yours, or debts that are legally stale, or debts they don't even legitimately own).

Don't change your phone number or become a prisoner in your own home. Under the law, there are ways to stop the calls and harassment. Many collection techniques are legally "unfair" or "deceptive," and may entitle the consumer to money damages. For example, it may be unlawful for a debt collector to communicate with third parties without permission; continue to contact you when you've told them, in writing, to stop; make obscene or insulting remarks; make false or misleading statements about the amount or status of the debt or about their identity and authority; threaten jail, arrest, or loss of custody of your children; attempt to collect unauthorized fees or charges; send you collection letters that, falsely, look like court papers. Do these things really happen? You bet they do. By the way, lawyers and law firms who regularly collect debts are considered "debt collectors" for purposes of fair debt collection law.

THE TAKE AWAY MESSAGE: In seeking to avoid the time, money, and uncertainties of a lawsuit, creditors and debt collectors holding "unsecured" debts sometimes become too aggressive or too clever for their (and your) own good. But, under the law, you don't have to hide under the sofa, lose sleep, or disconnect your phone. The law allows you to cease the harassment and to protect certain basic amounts of your income and assets. Know your rights so that you can exercise them.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   

101 Guide for Stun Gun Laws in the US

Do you have a stun gun at home? Are you using them for self-defense? Are you also aware that different states have different laws on them? With the rising criminality and abuses nowadays, you may already know someone who has a stun gun with him inside his bag or pockets.

You can never entrust your personal safety and protection to anyone at anytime, right? This is the primary reason why plenty of individuals prefer to bring their own self-defense tool anywhere they go. Apart from pepper sprays, stun guns are one of the most preferred device of everyone. Despite its small size, it is a powerful device that can temporarily incapacitate an intruder, an abductor or a perpetrator. However, it is not simple to own such tool because there are laws associated with its ownership. Thus it is vital to know these laws before purchasing one. You need to be familiar with the laws and general rules which may apply to the state where you reside. Most importantly, you need to be familiar with the specific laws and legislations concerning them. You have to be familiar with them to avoid getting into trouble. If you are unfamiliar with the basic laws concerning its ownership, then read this article to have an overview on its use and ownership.

Even though majority of the states in the United States permit their citizens to own one for self-defense and for protection, there are still some which outlawed them. Majority of states allow citizens to use this device. It could be kept inside the house for protection and self-defense.

Some states even require a person to undergo a complete criminal records and background check before he/she is allowed to buy one. More so, before buying one, you need to ensure that you buy the tool from an accredited, licensed and registered dealer. If ever you plan to buy the device from an online retailer, make sure to provide the right address so it can be shipped directly to your address. You should also remember that these retailers cannot ship these devices to APO addresses or much more to countries outside the United States. Shipping of these products outside the country is not allowed.

You should also remember that it is illegal to bring this tool inside federal and state government buildings such as police stations, court houses or government offices, otherwise you need to deposit or surrender it to the security personnel for safekeeping and claim it afterwards.

You should also remember that these devices are not allowed on board any airplanes. If you are bringing it with you during your travel, be sure to declare it properly and place with your other belongings.

Moreover, retailers are not allowed to sell these devices to individuals below 18 years old and they should not possess these items.

With the guidelines mentioned above, you are guided on the dos and don'ts of having stun guns.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   Which Judgments Should You Take?   

Lords Reform

In between naps, I watched the Federer Murray tennis final, and as predicted, Federer won at a canter. The one thing that surprised me was that Murray was upset at losing! I mean, get a reality check! And the same applies to the overhyped press and media. Tears followed defeat, shared by several who knew and loved the lad, including his mother and life partner who spent the entire tournament shouting the odds like a fishwife.

But enough of Murray, and back to more pressing issues.

The reform of the House of Lords is on the political agenda, or sort of, with many Tory MPs opposed, and the Lib Dems insisting on reform as their price for supporting boundary changes. The whole business looks very tacky indeed!

The historians amongst you will remember the Parliament Act 1911, when the Lords backed down and ceded primacy to the Commons on all fiscal matters. Since then, the Lords has become increasingly a consultative chamber, and when push comes to shove, the Commons reigns supreme. Fair enough, as the House of Commons is the elected chamber, over which the voting public has a say in its constituent parts.

The problem about the Lib Dems' proposals is that an elected House of Lords chamber risks elevating it beyond its present remit, to the point where they can, and possibly will, challenge government legislation and propose legislation of their own motion. To a limited extent they can do this now, but it is, above all, to a limited extent.

An elected chamber must ultimately answer to its electorate, or else it defeats the purpose of the exercise. As an elector, I will not expect my representative to become a 'yes' man to the Commons, but to represent me according to my chosen candidate's manifesto. If he does not, then I shall not vote for him again. After all, that is the basic principle of democracy.

Reforming the Lords in the way proposed by the Lib Dems is the worst of both worlds. It risks changing their mandate without any checks and balances in place, and frankly, this will jar with the Parliament Act and all that followed. It amounts to a major constitutional change.

I am not sure how it will work. Do you have to be a Lord before you can stand for election? If so, that narrows the field and possibly disqualifies the most worthy candidates. If not, do you become a Lord if elected? And what happens if you lose your seat? Do you revert to Mr. Joe Bloggs, or are you still Lord Bloggs?

There are two options: either leave the House of Lords as it is, warts and all, and adopt the memorable quip attributed to Louis B Mayer: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". Or abolish the House of Lords, and have a truly elected chamber similar to the American Senate. This tinkering at the edges proposed by the Lib Dems is a recipe for constitutional confrontation and, like so many of their ideas, badly thought through if at all.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   Which Judgments Should You Take?   4 Civil Summons Mistakes to Avoid   

How To Record A Lien

I am not a lawyer, I am a Judgment Broker. This article is my opinion, and not legal advice, based on my experience in California. Laws vary in each state. If you ever need any legal advice or a strategy to use, please contact a lawyer.

Recording a judgment lien used to be the most popular and cost effective way to recover most judgments. Due to the economic mess, liens are not as reliable or as wise of an investment as they used to be.

There are many kinds of liens that generally can be classified as being one of two types; real estate liens, and non-real estate liens.

Depending on which state you are in, there are usually three kinds of liens used in the recovery of judgments: real estate liens, UCC liens, and liens created by having a judgment debtor personally served with a judgment debtor examination.

All regular judgment liens expire, however most can be renewed. Usually, real estate liens last as long as the underlying judgment. UCC liens last an average of five years, and debtor examination liens usually last one year.

In judgment recovery, the most popular type of liens are real estate liens. When the judgment debtor's property is sold or refinanced, the judgment is sometimes partially or fully satisfied, in exchange for the creditor removing the lien.

In California, to record a real estate lien:

1) Fill out an Abstract Of Judgment form. You can get this form at the court or the court's web site. Make two paper copies.

2) Bring or mail the two paper copies to the court. Pay the court, to have the court stamp and endorse the Abstract Of Judgment forms. They keep one copy, and give you the second copy. Make a copy of that, or the court can print an extra copy for you for a nominal fee.

3) Bring or mail two copies of the Abstract Of Judgment to the county recorder where the judgment debtor's property is located. Pay the recorder to record your abstract of judgment, and pay them to mail a lien notice to the judgment debtor. The county recorder will keep one copy of the Abstract Of Judgment, and return their endorsed copy to you. County recorder policy varies by county and state, so always verify the details at the court or their web site.

UCC liens are usually recorded when the judgment debtor is a business. UCC liens are sometimes also recorded for non-business judgment debtors.

To record a UCC lien, download a UCC form from your Secretary Of State's web site and fill it out. Writing the judgment information and case number, and a description of the judgment debtor's assets on the UCC form, can make that lien stronger.

Mail the completed UCC form to the Secretary Of State with a check, and wait for them to mail a copy to you. Then, mail a copy of the endorsed UCC form to the judgment debtor.

In California, having a judgment debtor personally served with a judgment debtor exam, creates a lien on their personal property for one year. Writing a description of some of the judgment debtor's personal property on the front or back of the debtor examination forms and affidavits, may make this kind of lien stronger.

The most common way a judgment creditor may get paid by recording a real estate lien, is if or when the debtor sells or refinances their property, because sometimes lenders and buyers require or arrange for prior recorded liens to get paid off.

Sometimes recorded liens can make you a secured creditor if your debtor files for bankruptcy protection. Once in a while, you might eventually get paid something after your judgment debtor files for bankruptcy protection.

Getting and recording judgment liens does not guarantee that a judgment creditor will get paid.

In fact, usually, these days, recording liens will not result in any payment. However, getting and recording a lien is not difficult or expensive, and may be a good first step to eventually getting paid.

How to Fight a Credit Card Lawsuit: Request to Admit Facts Collection Lawsuit   Should You Give Up Ownership Of Your Judgment?   Responding to a Collection Agency's Interrogatories Correctly   Receiving a Summons: How to Answer a Summons for Debt Properly   Which Judgments Should You Take?