Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Massachusetts

Re: Personal loan

To put a lien on their home will require legal action, a court order for attachment in pending litigation. Contact me if you would like our office to represent you in this matter.

Re: Personal loan

The first question raised is whether the two checks totalling $15,000 were a gift or a loan. Certainly, it would have been great from an evidentiary standpoint if you had a written agreement, but one is not required. Assuming the $15,000 was in fact a personal loan, you can place a prejudgment lien on non exempt property of the defendants to secure payment in the event you are successful in your lawsuit. This procedure is done during the pendency of the lawsuit and prior to judgment and the steps for accomplishing it are set forth in the Massachusetts Rules of Civil Procedure 4.1 and 4.2. The steps are very complex and should be done by a licensed attorney in your area.

Lastly, assuming you are successful in your lawsuit against these defendants in Massachusetts, you would be able to enforce the judgment in Nevada to secure payment.

Re: Personal loan

Chances are you won't be able to lien their home. They probably have the homestead exemption, which would make their home unreachable to secure debts under $300,000 unrelated to the home itself.

You may be able to secure an attachment of other assets, bank accounts, open contracts, receivables, etc., but it is work-intensive and a difficult legal hurdle.

A lawsuit on a defaulted loan moves very quickly, especially if the debtors will not mount a defense, other than the inability to pay. The advantages of filing a suit and getting to a quick judgment is you would have priority as a judgment creditor over unsecured creditors.

More likely, the filing of a suit would require them to deal with you, perhaps resulting in a voluntary agreement to an enforceable payment plan (enforceable by an agreement for judgment in the event of default on the payment plan). Contact me if you'd like help putting some heat on them to get you paid or, at least, priority over other creditors, which no doubt exist as well. The investment in a lawyer could be the difference between recovering something or nothing (or very little) at all.