Your Lawyer
Owed money? Recover your debt
If you have a small debt owed to you, send a letter requesting payment to the debtor (the person who owes you money).
A more formal letter of demand can be sent to the debtor by your solicitor. If this is not successful you may decide to issue a complaint at your local Magistrates’ Court.
Your solicitor can arrange for the complaint to be issued and served correctly on the debtor. Your solicitor can also conduct legal proceedings and arrange to recover the debt on your behalf.
Before deciding to take legal action to recover a debt you must decide whether the debt is worth pursuing. You should consider:
- can you find the debtor? If they are interstate, debt recovery will be expensive;
- can the debtor pay the money owed? If the person can’t pay and is likely to be declared bankrupt by legal proceedings, the debt may not be worth pursuing;
- how much are your legal costs going to be? You may spend more on legal costs than you recover; and
- is there a chance you could lose the case? Recovering the debt may not be worth the financial risk.
All of these issues should be discussed with your solicitor before proceeding.
More information
Dealing with debt, information brochure. Available from the LIV or ask your solicitor.
Disclaimer:
The information in this newsletter is not intended to be a complete statement of the law relating to the issues raised. Accordingly, no person should rely on this information without first obtaining specific advice from Sam Marash of our office. | 
