How to Find and Hire Someone to Enforce

Your Judgment

If you've won a judgment and the debtor hasn't paid, you have a few paths forward: enforce it yourself, hire an attorney, or work with a judgment enforcement professional or agency on a contingency basis. Here's what to know before choosing.

Option 1: Do It Yourself

Some creditors handle enforcement on their own, especially for smaller judgments. This means filing the discovery requests, restraining orders, liens, or garnishments yourself, tracking deadlines, and following up when a bank or employer doesn't respond.

This can work if you have the time, the judgment is straightforward, and you already know where the debtor's assets are. It gets harder if the debtor is uncooperative, has moved, or has assets that require some investigation to locate.

Option 2: Hire an Attorney

An attorney can handle enforcement on an hourly or flat-fee basis. This makes sense for larger judgments or complex cases — for example, where the debtor is hiding assets through related entities, or where you expect the debtor to fight every step.

The tradeoff is cost: hourly fees can add up regardless of whether collection succeeds, so for smaller judgments, or judgments where the debtor's ability to pay is uncertain, this isn't always the most efficient option.

Option 3: Work With a Contingency-Based Enforcement Service

Some firms and individuals specialize specifically in judgment enforcement and work on contingency — meaning they only get paid a percentage of what's actually collected. This aligns their incentives with yours: no recovery, no fee.

This route tends to make the most sense when:

• You don't have time to manage the process yourself

• You're not sure whether the debtor has collectible assets

• The judgment has sat unenforced for a while and needs someone to actively investigate

What to Ask Before Hiring Anyone

Regardless of which route you choose, a few questions are worth asking upfront:

• What's the fee structure? Contingency percentage, flat fee, or hourly — and what happens if nothing is recovered?

• What's included? Does the fee cover filing costs, investigation, and follow-up, or are those billed separately?

• What's their process for locating assets? A vague answer here is a red flag — real enforcement work involves specific investigative steps, not just filing paperwork and waiting.

• How do they handle judgments that don't have obvious assets? Some judgments take real digging. Ask whether they walk away quickly or actually investigate.

• Do they have experience with your type of debtor? Enforcing against an individual, a small business, and a larger corporate debtor can call for different approaches.

A Judgment Doesn't Expire on Its Own Timeline

Many people assume that if a judgment hasn't been collected within the first year or two, it's effectively dead. That's often not true — judgments frequently remain enforceable for many years, and debtors' financial circumstances change over time. Someone who looked judgment-proof at the time of the original case may not be years later.

This post is for general informational purposes and isn't legal advice. If you're holding an uncollected judgment and want to talk through your options, reach out to us directly.