Legal Question in Civil Litigation in New York
dear lawguru service,
i apologize if i've asked under the wrong category. i have no idea where this would fit.
in 2005, my mother, thinking she was investing in what turned out to be a scam, lost $20,000. she does not have a promisory agreement, but when she pressured the man who owes her this money to pay it back, to appease her he wrote her some checks that ~are~ signed by him and are not dated.
out of desperation my mother threatened him with cashing those checks (in hopes that she would receive the funds stipulated thereon, or if he doesn't have enough money to cover the amounts, that he would get in trouble for writing bad checks) ...and HE told her that he has reported those checks stolen and that SHE will be the one in legal trouble if she attempts to cash those checks.
...does my mother have no recourse to ever get her money back? and (if this is two questions and you're not allowed to answer two for free, i understand, and ignore this) will my mother get in legal trouble if she attempts to cash the checks?
i will absolutely hire someone if you think she has any recourse.
thank you so much for your time and expertise!
with highest regards,
angel
1 Answer from Attorneys
There are banking procedures that your mother can use to attempt to collection on the debt owed. If all else fails, she can filed a civil suit to recover the money owed.