Question:
I recently purchased the above referenced Manual and am going through it carefully. I have a question about the sample Agreement For Assignment on page 59.  In the first paragraph under "Remaining amount is to be disbursed as follows:" It states that the JUDGMENT CREDITOR gets (let's use) 50% until the JUDGMENT CREDITOR has received 50% of any portion of funds recovered by ASSIGNEE from any combination of ASSIGNEE and JUDGMENT CREDITOR. Is this trying to say that the CREDITOR is limited to 50% of the combination of funds received by him from ASSIGNEE AND JUDGMENT DEBTOR ? Or are we saying a combination of funds received by ASSIGNEE from Debtor and Creditor? The sentence does not make sense to me. Thank you for your help.

Answer:

As Judge Judy would say, whatever is written in a contract and agreed to is what is enforceable and legally binding. In the case where 50% is the agreed split on recoverable funds, that 50% is the amount the portion the that you (the assignee and person appointed to act for your client) receive of any monies collected from the judgment debtor. This is in exchange for your services to enforce the judgment in exchange for 50% of whatever funds are collected from the debtor, be they $100 or $10,000 dollars. After receiving ones signed agreements, which is a relatively simple matter, and filing them with the court, one is ready to dig in and start.

Any other fees are not subject to a contingency such as the accrued interest and enforcement cost expenses for each and every judgment you processed. If one is negotiating with a small or larger businesses to take on a portion of or all of their collections, a lower contingency fee would give one a more competitive advantage against other agencies.

Hope that helps, your Small Claims Processing Help Desk

Question:

I did not ask my question clearly, so let me try again.

The first sentence under "Remaining amount is to be disbursed as follows" in the Agreement For Assignment is not clear to me.
It states that the Creditor gets say 50% until he has received 50% of the funds recovered by me from any combination of ASSIGNEE (i.e. me) and the Creditor (which is him). He isn't going to receive any money from himself.

It seems like it should say that the Creditor gets his 50% until he has received a total of 50% from me and the Debtor.
Sorry to be a bother, but I would not be able to explain to a client what that sentence means

Answer:

Asignment Agreement Queston

Remaining amount to be disbursed as follows: 50% to the judgment creditor (your client) until such date as judgment creditor has received 50% of any portion of funds recovered by assignee (you the judgment collections specialist).

This says that the max the judgment creditor will get is 50% of any collected monies.

Yes, legal contract talk can seem unclear and sometimes confusing. Whatever terms and stipulation that are written in a contract is binding on the parties signing the contract.

Since this is your contract, you could rewrite it in better or clearer English in order to make specific your point of view and/or clarify details pertaining to and binding to the parties involved.

Some would tell you to consult with an attorney, but that can be an extra expense that you might not want starting out. I think that as long as you have all the bases covered in what you want to deliver, you'll be fine.