Fill Out Legal California Collections Forms For Free

To start a Small Claims suit, you need to file the Plaintiff's Claim and Order to Go to Small Claims Court (Form SC-100). You can get this form for free on the internet, at .courts.ca.gov/forms. San Bernardino County also offers Small Claims eFiling.

How do I collect my money? If you know where the Judgment Debtor banks, you can ask the Sheriff to collect money from their account (bank account levy). If you know where the Judgment Debtor works, the Sheriff can collect 25% of the debtor's wages each pay period until your judgment is paid in full (wage garnishment).

If you win a judgment issued by a federal court, you may start collecting right away. The defendant has 30 days to file an appeal or post a bond. If the defendant posts a bond you must cease your collection efforts (Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure 4(b)).

In California, the Abstract of Judgment is a Judicial Council form that can be downloaded from any court website (Form EJ-001). The form asks for information regarding the debtor's name, last known address, driver's license number, and the amount of money the debtor owes you.

Money judgments automatically expire (run out) after 10 years. To prevent this from happening, you as the judgment creditor must file a request for renewal of the judgment with the court BEFORE the 10 years run out.

Most judgments expire in 10 years after entry unless the judgment creditor renews it. Expired means the court won't force the person to pay it anymore. So, if someone tries to collect a judgment that is more than 10 years old, they legally can't unless it's been renewed.