Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Rhode Island

Re: my ex-boyfriend owes me money

If he won't pay you voluntarily, then ultimately you may need to hire a lawyer to sue him to get the money back.

In the meantime, though, you would do well to exercise whatever pressure you can to at least get him to agree that he owes you a certain sum. Otherwise you'll have to introduce evidence to a Court showing it is more likely than not that he owes you a certain amount - this task would certainly be easiest to accomplish with copies of cancelled checks (better yet, with a notation such as "loan" in the Memo section to clearly distinguish the check from a gift - something many domestic "borrowers" argue).

Depending on all the facts and circumstances, some lawyers *may* consider handling such a matter for a fee contingent on collection, though even in that event many qualified lawyers will require that you agree to pay hourly for time spent defending against any possible counterclaim, should your ex sue you back. Such a counterclaim is not unusual in such situations, even if only for tactical/strategic reasons.

If the amount due is large and/or not in dispute, you may be better off hiring a lawyer on an hourly basis anyway.

In any event, you may want to look for a lawyer with experience in similar matters.

Best wishes,

Scott