Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Enforcement of Judgment

We are a law firm in Florida. We obtained a final judgment against a california corporation that defaulted on a lease in Florida. Since the coporation was not registered as authorized to do business in Florida, we cannot serve the corporation with our enforcement subpoena through their registered agent. What is the procedure in California for service of enforcement subpoenaes which were issued in another state when the company being subpoenaed is a California corporation. From what I have read so far, I believe that we have to register the Florida judgment in California and then proceed with enforcement on the California judgment. Is this correct?


Asked on 7/27/05, 1:07 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Philip Iadevaia Law Offices of Philip A. Iadevaia

Re: Enforcement of Judgment

I believe you're right. You must first have a sister-state judgment entered in California and then proceed to enforce the judgment here. Good Luck. If you'd like me to help, my fees are reasonable. Please call me. --Phil

Read more
Answered on 7/27/05, 1:16 pm
Carl Starrett Law Offices of Carl H. Starrett II

Re: Enforcement of Judgment

California has adopted the Sister State Enforcement of Judgment Act (might not be the exact title). You file a petition with the Superior Court to register the judgment. You need to personally serve the petition on the judgment debtor who then has 30 days to object to entry of a final California judgment. If the judgment debtor does nothing (i.e. file a motion to quash) then it becomes an enforceable judgment and you may proceed with using California law.

I do quite a bit of debt collection in California and I have helped out-of-state attorneys with this procedure in the past. Feel free to contact me if you need assistance.

Read more
Answered on 7/27/05, 1:17 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More General Civil Litigation questions and answers in California