In a civil case, when the plaintiff is successful in proving his case, he obtains a judgment against the defendant. If the case seeks recovery of money damages, the judgment will be for a specific dollar amount of recovery.
The story does not end here, however. As we are witnessing in the civil case brought by the parents of Ron Goldman against O.J. Simpson, the case isn’t over when a judgment is rendered. The successful plaintiff still has to collect on his judgment. In most cases, the defendant does not simply write a check at the conclusion of the trial.
Upon being awarded a judgment, a plaintiff is entitled to seek the issuance of a writ of execution directed to the Sheriff (or other enforcement authority) and requesting the seizure and sale of the defendant’s property to satisfy the judgment. A writ of execution is thus nothing more than a court order directing the Sheriff to go out to the defendant’s property (or the defendant’s bank, brokerage house or other financial institution) and seize sufficient assets to satisfy the plaintiff’s money judgment.
In the Simpson case, the Goldman family was seeking to seize Simpson’s Heisman Trophy, an item with significant monetary value to collectors. If successful, the Goldmans will have the trophy auctioned to the highest bidder at a sheriff’s sale. The proceeds of the sale will be used to partially satisfy the judgment against Mr. Simpson.
The point of the story is this: Civil suits are two-act plays. Act one is winning your case in the courtroom. Act two is collecting on your judgment. Given the relative ease with which assets are concealed and transferred in our modern mobile society, collection is often more difficult than winning your case.
While collection can be difficult, we have an arsenal of tools available to us to help locate assets to satisfy a judgment. One is the “debtor’s examination”, which is essentially a deposition of the defendant under oath to determine the amount and whereabouts of his assets. The defendant can be required to produce financial documents, tax returns, deeds, titles to vehicles, statements, cancelled checks and the like. This process often uncovers sources of recovery on the judgment.
The key to successful recovery is finding and seizing assets of the judgment debtor – before some other creditor does so.
The story does not end here, however. As we are witnessing in the civil case brought by the parents of Ron Goldman against O.J. Simpson, the case isn’t over when a judgment is rendered. The successful plaintiff still has to collect on his judgment. In most cases, the defendant does not simply write a check at the conclusion of the trial.
Upon being awarded a judgment, a plaintiff is entitled to seek the issuance of a writ of execution directed to the Sheriff (or other enforcement authority) and requesting the seizure and sale of the defendant’s property to satisfy the judgment. A writ of execution is thus nothing more than a court order directing the Sheriff to go out to the defendant’s property (or the defendant’s bank, brokerage house or other financial institution) and seize sufficient assets to satisfy the plaintiff’s money judgment.
In the Simpson case, the Goldman family was seeking to seize Simpson’s Heisman Trophy, an item with significant monetary value to collectors. If successful, the Goldmans will have the trophy auctioned to the highest bidder at a sheriff’s sale. The proceeds of the sale will be used to partially satisfy the judgment against Mr. Simpson.
The point of the story is this: Civil suits are two-act plays. Act one is winning your case in the courtroom. Act two is collecting on your judgment. Given the relative ease with which assets are concealed and transferred in our modern mobile society, collection is often more difficult than winning your case.
While collection can be difficult, we have an arsenal of tools available to us to help locate assets to satisfy a judgment. One is the “debtor’s examination”, which is essentially a deposition of the defendant under oath to determine the amount and whereabouts of his assets. The defendant can be required to produce financial documents, tax returns, deeds, titles to vehicles, statements, cancelled checks and the like. This process often uncovers sources of recovery on the judgment.
The key to successful recovery is finding and seizing assets of the judgment debtor – before some other creditor does so.
– Kevin Palmer