Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Virginia
Address verification needed to file in General District Court
Per the email response below, it was recommeded that we can sue in General District Court due to non-repayment of a loan. However, what are our options if we are unable to attain their new address?
Non-repayment of Loan from Friend
There are several parts to your question and therefore several answers. First, oral contracts are valid contracts in Virginia. They are enforceable in a court of law. So, if you can show that there was an oral contract to lend $4,000 the contract will be upheld in court. Second, you say your friends have moved and are not responding. You need to send them a letter reminding them of their obligation to pay you back. In that letter you could remind them of the damage to their credit rating and reputation which would occur if you have to sue them and win. In this letter you could require a response within (say) a week or so. If you do not get a satisfactory response you can sue. (BTW, a letter is not a requirement to have the right to sue--it is just a cheap, easy way to prove that you tried to work it out.) The letter could also be used to get the written proof of a contract if it is worded properly.
In any case, if the response to the letter is unsatisfactory, you have the right to sue. In VA
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Address verification needed to file in General District Court
A debt collection attorney has additional tools for finding their address.
And you can also serve someone who has disappeared by serving the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The paperwork for doing that is cumbersome, detailed, and not cheap. But it can be done.
Re: Address verification needed to file in General District Court
If you can't locate your loan defaultors so that they can be served with copies of your lawsuit filed in general district court, you could hire
a private investigator to see whether he or she might be able to find them with an address at which they can be properly served with the papers.
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