Success Stories

Our Successful Cases

Date: December 2022

Summary: A few years ago, California changed its laws regarding real property levies (aka judicial foreclosures). The change made real property levies virtually impossible in Los Angeles and Orange counties. However, this does not mean a judgment creditor should not place a lien on the judgment debtor’s real property interests. This is still a vital part of the judgment enforcement process. It restricts the debtor’s ability to refinance, sell, or even transfer the real property upon death. And these liens led to four payouts this month for my clients against debtors who faced those very real goals. Paid in full plus interests and costs. Everyone very happy!

Date: September 2021

Summary: More than 98% of all lawsuits never go trial. They get settled. They go straight to judgment without a trial. Etc. And for this case, we mailed letters to the debtor. No response. We made telephone calls. All to voicemail without a return call. Then we filed suit. Finally they answered. Then we propounded lots and lots of discovery. Still they fought us. Then on the eve of trial, finally they stopped making low-ball settlement offers and made a real offer. We were successfully able to negotiate a settlement acceptable for our client. Win-win all around. And as is not uncommon, trial avoided.

Date: September 2021

Summary: Our client obtained a six-figure judgment in her divorce case. After working with three prior attorneys with no success, she turned to us. For more than three years we fought with this deadbeat ex, and finally pushed him in the right direction. He had tried to hide his fractional ownership in an apartment complex, but then we located it, went to trial on a quiet title lawsuit, and pushed until he coughed up the entire judgment to avoid losing his interest in the apartment complex. Very happy client who had been through too much over the past decade.

Date: March 2021

Summary: This debtor was a slippery one. No assets. No legitimate source of income. Always playing games – hiding behind businesses, friends, family. Anyone and everyone helping him avoid paying our judgment. But once we were able to bring the debtor into court for a judgment debtor examination, the pressure became too much. But the key was the service of process. The debtor lived in a gated community. And then he lived in a gated home within this gated community. We had a stake out conducted and finally located our debtor on the golf course. Served him right there with his foursome! Well, today, the wire of nearly $300K came in to settle this one!

Date: November 2020

Summary: Our debtor this time tried to hide behind corporations and limited liability companies. The doctor was evading service and doing everything to stop us. Until our investigations found a life insurance policy he had personally been funding for years. Except in rare exceptions, life insurance policies are almost always owned by individuals in their own name for tax purposes. We received a court order and seize the six figure cash value of the policy. Then, and only then, the debtor came to the table to pay the remaining balance.

Date: June 2020

Summary: When the debtor wouldn’t respond to us, we had no choice to file suit. The debtor knew that his only asset was his home, which he was planning on selling shortly. So the debtor expected that there would be no assets left by the time we got to him. But he was wrong! He sued and obtained a judgment fast. Then we quickly placed a lien on his home while it was in escrow, but the sale had not closed yet. The sale closed after our lien was recorded, but title and escrow missed it due to the timing. But when we put pressure on title insurance, and started to levy the home belonging to a new owner, title caved. They paid 100% within 48 hours, including all of our costs and attorneys’ fees.

Date: June 2019

Summary: We could not get our debtor to listen to us. Nothing we did. Bank levies. Wage garnishments. Motions. Nothing. Until we filed a new lawsuit for fraudulent transfer. We named the judgment debtor’s children and best friends in the lawsuit based on the information we discovered. After we survived early motions to dismiss the lawsuit, the debtor came to the table to negotiate and settle. He just could not continue to put his children and best friends at risk. The pressure finally got to him. Another success story for our clients!

Date: April 2019

Summary: Sometimes nothing can get a debtor’s attention. Not letters. Not telephone calls. Not lawsuits. Nothing. Well, that is until it comes time to sell their home. And that is what we did here again. But really, this didn’t even get the debtor’s attention. So we sold the home and were paid in full, every last penny including years of interest. Only after the sale did the debtor start to complain and call our offices. Sorry, too late for you now. Better luck next time.

Date: February 2019

Summary: Not every case requires substantially tough love. Sometimes, just the right nudge gets the job done. Last month, after our client’s invoices went unpaid for 90 days, and our collections letters were ignored, we filed suit. This finally got the debtor’s attention and we received a credit card payment for the entire invoice within 48 hours of service of the lawsuit on the debtor. Fast and quick justice!

Date: October 2018

Summary: Sometimes judgment enforcement simply relies on good old fashion basics – research and seizures. This time, our client had a judgment of $1M+. Debtor had no desire to settle and hid everything he had. But we were able through our in-house investigators to locate a bank account belonging to the judgment debtor’s wife. We quickly seized approximately $60K. After several months of legal fighting, we prevailed and the sheriff delivered the funds to us. In addition, this brought the judgment debtor to the table and we worked out a settlement that satisfied everyone involved. Another happy client!

Date: June 2018

Summary: Not every case ends easily. Our client was owed a substantial sum on a lease that went bad. The Debtor refused to pay. We tried everything but nothing worked. We were forced to go to trial. All parties showed up. At the conclusion of the trial, the Court awarded our client 100% of what we sued for, plus attorney’s fees, court costs and interest. Shortly after entry of judgment, we explained to the Debtor how the enforcement process was going to play out. He wanted nothing to do with it, especially after already losing horribly at trial. We received a check the next week for 100% of what was owed, including the attorney’s fees, court costs and interest.

Date: February 2018

Summary: Sometimes, collections debts requires good old fashion lawsuits and litigation. We have been embattled in a heated lawsuit for almost two years. But on the eve of trial, knowing we had done everything we needed to do in order to prevail, the debtor came to the table with a very favorable settlement. Our client was happy. Another one in the win column for Joshua P. Friedman & Associates, Inc.!

Date: January 2018

Summary: We did it again to start the new year! Again, on the eve of judicially foreclosing on a debtor’s primary residence, the debtor came up with the cash to pay our client off 100%. Including attorney’s fees, court costs and every penny of interest!

Date: October 2017

Summary: While most debts do not age well, sometimes time is the cure-all when nothing else will work. Several years ago, our firm filed suit and obtained a judgment against a debtor. But even after many years of chasing the debtor, we were unable to find any assets other than the debtor’s primary residence. We placed a lien on the residence and then waited. Just this month, the debtor needed to refinance and our client was paid in full, plus 10% interest per annum for five years. Nice windfall for everyone involved!

Date: September 2017

Summary: Sometimes, simple pressure and fear of the consequences of a trial bring the debtor to a rational resolution. Trial was just days away and a large judgment most likely looming. The debtors went to friends and families and raised the funds necessary to settle the dispute. Payment received and cleared. Everyone was happy to move on with another successful debt resolution.

Date: August 2017

Summary: This time, our debtor had no source of income. No specific assets in his personal name. But he had certain company investments that are worth quite a lot of money based on their residual value. We pushed the debtor to take a loan out against the future income of these companies. He refused. So we obtained a court order requiring the debtor to turn over the stock certificates to the sheriff for public auction. The stock is worth 10x what our judgment is. The debtor quickly paid up. Another satisfied client!

Date: June 2017

Summary: We did it again in June! Just like last month, on the eve of finalizing the process of judicially foreclosing on a debtor’s primary residence, the debtor came up with the cash to pay our client off 100%. Including attorney’s fees, court costs and every penny of interest!

Date: May 2017

Summary: The most likely way to get paid from a debtor who refuses to pay is by applying the right amount of pressure at the perfect moment in a precise manner. To accomplish this goal takes research and analysis. But sometimes, old fashion brute force gets the job done. We initiated the process of judicially foreclosing on a debtor’s primary residence and with the sale date quickly approaching, the debtor came up with the cash to pay our client off 100%. No discount. Paid in full. Everyone was very happy!

Date: March 2017

Summary: Sometimes even deadbeats can pay up! Our debtor could barely afford the necessities of life and enforcement looked slim. But due to the regular tracking and tracing and following we always perform, we discovered that our deadbeat fell into a terrific lawsuit herself and sued and won millions of dollars. We instantly placed a lien on those proceeds and promptly filed appropriate motions to have the funds assigned to us. Our deadbeat never saw a penny. Our clients received a wire within days. Perfect ending to a storm of activity!

Date: January 2017

Summary: We were retained to enforce a judgment against a debtor in the entertainment field. We quickly applied pressure from all angles – we obtained a court order to seize his residuals from past projects, we levied his bank accounts and we initiated judicial foreclosure process. This final step brought them to the negotiating table. In exchange for delaying the foreclosure, we allowed him to sell his residence on the open market on condition we were paid in full – every last penny of the judgment, interest and attorney’s fees. Success – closed at the end of the month!

Date: December 2016

Summary: It has been a good few months recently. We were retained to enforce a labor board award in October. We quickly located a bank account for the business and levied it. It had enough to pay the full amount owed $50K+. The debtor, however, claimed he never knew about the judgment and filed a motion to set aside the judgment, which would then void our levy. We opposed the motion. We prevailed. We got to keep the entire balance collected. Everyone is very happy, of course!

Date: November 2016

Summary: It is rare, but sometimes simply filing a lawsuit gets the other side to have their heart-to-heart talk. They actually analyze the costs-benefits of fighting it out with our firm and realize they are in a no-win situation. We recently sent demand letters. Ignored. Made telephone calls. Ignored. Sent letters informing the debtors of our intent to file suit. Ignored. Actually filed suit – AND THERE IT IS. Within two weeks of being served with the lawsuit, the debtor paid in full – EVERY PENNY OWED. Happy client. Happy attorneys. It is how it goes at Joshua P. Friedman & Associates, Inc.

Date: August 2016

Summary: Our client, another law firm, was stiffed by their client. So we represented the law firm to pursue collections of their outstanding legal bills. Letters failed. Phone calls failed. But then when the former client was hand-delivered the summons and complaint – the lawsuit got their attention. After tough and lengthy negotiations, with filing deadlines fast approaching – BOOM! Settlement reached. Settlement paid. Everyone walks away happy (or at least equally less angry). Another satisfied client!

Date: June 2016

Summary: Sometimes success is just in how you write your introduction letter to the debtor. Our client came to us and after reviewing the file thoroughly and doing our research, we discovered there was a potential newer deep pocket to pursue as well. We sent letters of representation to all of the potential defendants. Low and behold – the deep pocket came up with the full amount owed. Forty-eight hours later we received a wire for payment in full! Client and attorneys all still in excited shock!

Date: April 2016

Summary: Our client lent a franchisee significant money. The franchisee refused to pay back the loan. We filed suit and obtained a judgment for the full amount of the loan, interest, court costs and attorney’s fees. We then located the franchisee’s bank account and levied it promptly. We actually located all three of the franchisee’s bank accounts and hit them all relatively simultaneously. This pressure made the franchisee cave. He actually paid the remaining few hundred dollars due just to get us to go away. Another satisfied client!

Date: March 2016

Summary: Our client purchased and was assigned a commercial debt owed to a major financial institution. We filed suit – no response. We obtained a judgment – still no response. We located and hit their business bank account – now we had their attention. Debtor agreed to pay the entire judgment in full, plus interest, during 2016. Terrific result. Client ecstatic. Just what a little pressure can accomplish!

Date: January 2016

Summary: We were pursuing a debtor who had fallen substantially behind a personal line of credit with a national financial institution. The debtor had not made a single payment for more than one year. After lots of failed negotiations, we filed suit, obtained a judgment and began enforcing the same. Almost simultaneously, we hit her bank account, began a wage garnishment, filed multiple motions with the court and levied her attorney’s client-trust account. The debtor finally capitulated and sent us a check in full – six figures!

Date: September 2015

Summary: We were retained to collect money owed to law firm for unpaid fees. We filed suit, went to trial and obtained a favorable verdict – 100% of what we sought, plus attorney’s fees and court costs. Problem was we could not locate assets for the debtor. We knew he had a home and placed a lien on it. But nothing for three years. But just then, surprise, economy improves, debtor is desperate to sell his home and our lien gets paid in full. Client gets 100% recovery of principal, attorney’s fees and costs. Nice month for all involved!

Date: August 2015

Summary: We were retained to collect money owed to a bank for a defaulted loan. The debtor was unable to pay and there were no personal guarantees. However, with some creative enforcement, we were able to assist the debtor in locating new investors. As part of the investment, due to our liens and security positions, we were able to get the bank paid, even though the bank previously wrote off the loan and prior attorneys informed the bank that the judgment was worthless. Sometimes creativity and perseverance pay out!

Date: July 2015

Summary: Not every case is the same and often we must be creative in our approaches. This month showcased one such matter. When we first made contact with the debtor, she had no possible way to repay the loan she owed to our client. Instead of strong-arming a debtor with insufficient assets to pay, we assisted her to get a loan and refinance our client. Our client was paid in full, in excess of $100,000, and the debtor was happy to avoid litigation and a negative mark on her credit. A win for all parties involved!

Date: June 2015

Summary: Sometimes it is just easier than our typical cases. We filed a lawsuit in May, quickly served it thereafter and then immediately propounded discovery. After the defendant met with his attorney and started seeing the legal bills come in, the defendant made our client an offer it could not refuse – full repayment of the debt, plus interest and costs, only short of paying full attorney’s fees. All paid within less than two months of placement with our firm. Could not be happier!

Date: April 2015

Summary: We were retained to enforce a judgment. Through our research, we discovered the judgment debtor owned a small commercial property, but it had liens and minimal equity. So we recorded a lien and waited patiently. Eventually, the debtor wanted to sell the property. They had to come to us to get a release first, however. Through escrow, we recovered our client’s entire judgment, 100%, plus costs and every penny of interest that accrued at the rate of 10% per annum for four years. Very happy client.

Date: March 2015

Summary: We were retained to collect money owed to a law firm for services provided. The former client did not pay and made all kinds of excuses. We pushed the former client throughout the litigation process – propounding discovery, taking depositions and filing motions. We were relentless. But still the former client refused to pay up. Finally, just a few weeks before trial, facing the probability of a substantial verdict in favor of our law firm client, the former client paid up – almost 100% of the money owed. The same former client made deals with all of their other creditors for less than 20 cents on the dollar. Our result was more than 400% better than the other creditors received. Obviously, the client was very happy with the results.

Date: February 2015

Summary: We were retained to collect money owed to a health care practitioner for services provided. The patient did not pay. The patient ignored the lawsuit so we were able to get a judgment. We located the patient’s place of employment and initiated an earnings withholding order (commonly known as wage garnishment). Still, the employer now refused to comply. So we brought a motion against the employer to hold the employer liable for the amount of the judgment plus our attorney’s fees. This brought the employer to its knees. The employer paid the judgment in full and is not pursuing reimbursement and indemnification against the patient/employee. But our client was paid 100% of what it was owed!

Date: January 2015

Summary: We were retained to collect money owed by a defendant who failed to pay pursuant to the terms of a purchase order it placed with our client. The defendant ignored the lawsuit and eventually we obtained a default judgment for our client. We properly seasoned the judgment despite our client’s constant urge to enforce it immediately. After we waited the appropriate time period, we then went full throttle and collected $24K+ through a bank levy. The defendant now came huffing and puffing into court demanding the judgment be set aside and the money returned to his bank account. The court reviewed the file and saw that we did everything 100% properly and refused the debtor’s demands. The client was paid in full and happy as they can be!

Date: November 2014

Summary: Our client, medical billing company, hired our firm to collect its unpaid fees from certain medical facilities. In one of the cases, the defendant did not respond to our letters or telephone calls. So we filed suit. The defendant still ignored us. So, on behalf of our client, we obtained a judgment. Then we promptly pursued the debtor, and collected every penny that was owed to our client by levying the judgment debtor’s bank accounts. Our client was ecstatic with the results – they did not have to settle or give up a single cent they were owed.

Date: October 2014

Summary: Our client, a purchaser of credit card charge-offs, retained our offices to collect the delinquent debts. We attempted to resolve prior to suit to no avail. We filed suit and the case went to a default judgment. We pursued every angle looking for the debtor’s assets for years, but never located the funds to fully pay the judgment. We levied the debtor’s bank accounts sporadically over the years and collected a few thousand dollars. Until we finally started the process to levy and sell the debtor’s house at a sheriff auction, and then the debtor came up with the entire amount owed, including our firm’s attorney’s fees and several years of interest.

Date: September 2014

Summary: Our client, a sub-contractor, hired us when the general contractor refused to pay them because the end user refused to pay the general contractor. While the general contractor and end user dragged on their own litigation with no end in sight, we quickly filed our lawsuit against the general contractor, attended arbitration pursuant to the terms of the contract, and quickly obtained an award in our client’s favor for 100% of the money owed. We promptly filed a motion to have the arbitration award confirmed by the court, and in order to avoid an official entry of judgment and/or face the consequences of an aggressive judgment enforcement process, the general contractor paid our client in full.

Date: August 2014

Summary: Our client hired us after their vendor breached the contract that the parties entered into. We tried valiantly to resolve the matter, but the vendor instead believed our client owed them money instead. Settlement was out of the question. After more than a year, we finally went to trial. It took the court just minutes to issue its judgment – our client was awarded every penny it sued for, plus interest, plus court costs and attorney’s fees. And the court rejected the vendor’s cross-complaint entirely. Complete vindication for our client.

Date: June 2014

Summary: We were retained to collect a commercial debt from a local doctor. After unsuccessfully resolving the matter prior to filing a lawsuit, we filed the lawsuit and obtained a judgment for our client. But still, the doctor refused to pay. We then had the court order that all payments due to the doctor from any and all insurance companies must be paid directly to our offices until such time as the judgment was paid in full. We finally got the doctor’s attention. The doctor promptly paid us in full before we had to start notifying the insurance companies with which the doctor regularly works.

Date: June 2014

Summary: After spending several years chasing down a debtor who was virtually impossible to locate, we finally found him. We never give up. We then started applying pressure – judgment debtor examinations, garnishing his wages and his wife’s wages, levying his bank accounts and retirement accounts, and even filing motions to add his employer to the judgment itself. As all of the pressure built up and the hearing dates approached, we were able to convince the debtor to come up with some money by borrowing from friends and family to settle the debt at a number acceptable to our client. Our client had received nothing from this deadbeat former client for almost a decade. We got them satisfied by never giving up and applying never-ending pressure.

Date: April 2014

Summary: During the course of enforcing a judgment, we located the judgment debtor’s bank account from a prior check the judgment debtor wrote to our client during the course of their business relationship, before everything went sour. We levied the bank account and received a few thousand dollars. The judgment debtor, however, did not want to live a life in perpetual fear of when we would strike again and cause havoc. The judgment debtor came to the table and negotiated an acceptable settlement and our client went away quite satisfied with the result.

Date: January 2014

Summary: Our client has a judgment against a company that provided sub-prime second mortgages on real property. Due to the economics of these transactions, the judgment debtor has no assets – every single loan is underwater and not viable at this time. Through levies and motions, we obtained all ownership rights in every single loan the judgment debtor has, ahead of all other creditors and investors. Our client is now receiving loan disbursements every month from the mortgages and also owns the rights to the other mortgages allowing our client to take further action when the economy improves.

Date: January 2014

Summary: During the course of enforcing a judgment, we were able to effectively convert our judgment debtor from an unsecured creditor into a secured creditor. When the judgment debtor eventually filed bankruptcy due to the more than 30 large creditors chasing him, we were the only secured creditor. The bankruptcy trustee did not fight us when we claimed a secured interest in the debtor’s $70K+ in his bank account. The remaining unsecured creditors did not receive anything whatsoever.

Disclaimer: The case studies, testimonials or endorsements set forth on this website do not constitute a guarantee, warranty or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter. No representation is made that the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers. Past success cannot be an assurance of future success because each case must be decided on its own merits. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.