Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Minnesota

Re: judgement by default

Has lawsuit been served?

Are you seeking interest + atty fees?

I have 25 years litigation experience if you wish assistance.

Re: judgement by default

Thank you for your question.

Before you can obtain a judgment against someone, they must be served with a summons and complaint, whether in district court or in conciliation court.

Things are relatively simple in conciliation court. You file a complaint and a hearing date is scheduled by the court. If the other party does not appear, you are ordinarily granted a judgment by default. You must then docket your judgment in district court, and thereafter you can make use of the various remedies available to any creditor -- garnish wages, a bank account, etc. That is where most people find the process to be the most confusing. Getting the judgment is easy, it is enforcing the judgment that can be hard.

If your claim exceeds the jurisdictional limits of conciliation court (presently $7,500) you must commence an action in district court. This involves serving a summons and complaint on the other party. Unlike conciliation court, you will not automatically be given a trial date. Instead, the court really depends on you to move the case forward. If the other party does not answer the complaint within twenty days, you can thereafter bring a motion for a default judgment, and barring something unusual, it should be granted. Since you are already in district court, you do not need to doctet the case in district court -- as is required of a conciliation court judgment.

If you need further assistance or have additional questions, please feel free to contact my office. Our contact information is below.

Good luck.