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Judgment Enforcement – The Step-by-Step Course
When the JD is a Personal Business = Person & Business are the Same
If the business is a personal business, the assets of the
debtor and the assets of the business are one & the same.
For example, if “Fast Carpet Cleaning” is a personal
business owned by Sam Debtor, then “Fast Carpet
Cleaning” = Sam Debtor, and Sam Debtor = Fast Carpet
Cleaning. They are the same, and that means their assets are the same. If your judgment is
against Sam Debtor, you can also take assets from the company, and vice versa.
Good news, yes?
And, you seize assets from a personal business much the same way you seize assets
from an individual. You locate the assets through a database, debtor’s examination (I’ll
cover this later) or other means, and then have the Sheriff levy upon them.
The only difference is that now you have two entities to get information about.
When the Debtor is a Corporation or LLC, the owner or member is NOT liable
First —How Corporations Work:
Although there are different types of corporations – C Corps, S Corps, and there’s also
LLC’s, my experience is that when enforcing judgments there are only two kinds of
corporations—large ones and small ones. Same with LLC’s.
Large corporations include Ford Motor Company, McDonalds, and Dell Computers.
Small corporations include the local dentist, Sam’s
Repair Shop, and any mom and pop business that
wants to save on taxes and protect their assets from
creditors—creditor’s like you, for example.
Corporations are established, in part, so that no
individual is personally liable for debts and liabilities. If there is a lawsuit against the
corporation (someone slipped and fell on the grocery store floor), it is the corporation’s
assets only which can be touched. Personal assets are protected.
For example, Dr. Roger Howard is a surgeon. He may establish his business as a
corporation named Dr. Roger Howard, Inc., or Dr. Roger Howard, LLC. He’ll still have his
houses, money, cars, and other things under his personal name, while he remains an
employee of the corporation. Legally speaking, he “works” for the corporation. This
protects Dr. Howard and his family in the unfortunate event that he should slip with a
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