Legal Question in Business Law in California

Re: Collecting on Judgement

More likely than not, not too many attorneys are going to what it takes a case. Your maximum is $5000 in small claims and you don't even state how much your judgment was for. You have a company which is foreign. And I really mean foreign because its Canadian and artistic company outside California doing business in California. If you expect someone takes on a contingency to chase the tale of a judgment which is less than $5000 don't count on it!!! You say in the business world attorneys do this not just for fun but also for profit and it doesn't look like they would be much profit based upon the hours it would have to be spent in your particular matter. The facts of life are here. Good luck you. If you want to you can contact a Canadian attorney in the geographic area in which the principal place of business of the company is located in Canada. You want a collection attorney to see if they can collect your judgment for you.

Re: Collecting on Judgement

Some reputable companies will pay judgments against them voluntarily rather than face the humiliation of collection efforts and liens. This may also be true of foreign corporations, even though they know they are somewhat sheltered from collection activities. Therefore, the first and least-expensive step is to send a copy of the judgment by registered mail to the company's law department and/or president, along with a letter requesting payment.

You might also contact the Canadian consulate in San Francisco; they probably have a trade or legal attache and might be able to assist. I would not expect them to make actual collection efforts but they may give you referrals to Canadian attorneys or tips on laws affecting enforcement of U.S. judgments in Canada.

By the way, the trade rep. may be able to advise whether the debtor has any current U.S. operations of note.

Failing that, I suppose there are attorneys in your area with some degree of specialization in collections, including international.