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Dear Larry: Just wanted to say thanks. Your website/book helped us win in court. I spent several hours preparing our binder and felt very organized going into court. Looking around we saw everyone else come in with loose papers just like you had said. We felt very prepared, but unfortunately the judge hardly looked at our binder. He just looked at what the landlord lacked as proof and awarded us judgement. Although the binder wasn't the deciding factor, it sure did help us have the confidence to stand up to our landlord in court.
Sincerely, Tonia Baily
Larry helped me get my deposit back from my slumlord. I highly recommend his presentation folder and expertize. I would not have received a dime without his help! Heather Hoffman Kimel
Disclaimer
This web site represents the experience of the authors, and does not constitute nor substitute for legal advice. The authors do not represent that your experience will be as fortunate as theirs, nor that your recovery will not be greater. It is merely an example of what you can achieve by asserting your legal rights and properly presenting your evidence in small claims court.
Copyright 2005 ~ 2010 Larry Cook and Larry D Cook
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11. Collect the judgment
If the landlord sued you in small claims court and lost, he can’t appeal and the judgment is final. If the judgment stipulates that the landlord owes you money, he typically has 30 days to pay you before you may begin the collection process. If your landlord refuses to pay, the Department of Consumer Affairs Web site (http://consumer-affairs.co.la.ca.us/tsCollectJudgement.html) gives an excellent overview of the collection process (for Californians).
My two favorite methods are collecting rent from the landlord’s current tenants (which is by court order—what a great way to let them know what’s up!) and retrieving the money from his bank account, among others. Get a canceled rent check you wrote to your landlord to get his bank account number (off the back of the check). To collect the judgment, you’ll go to the court and get a Writ of Execution from the clerk, and then contact the sheriff’s office to complete the process. In our case, the landlord mailed Marilyn a check (as seen above). Congratulations, you did it!!!
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