Payment Terms – After judgment has been obtained against you
This article deals only with Ontario Small Claims court matters.
There are several occasions where you may want to arrange payment terms with a creditor.
These times would be at various stages of a debt owing:
- before you are sued by the creditor
- after you are sued but before you have filed a defence
- after you are sued and after you have filed a defence
- after judgment has been obtained against you -(this article)
For the purpose of this article, I will deal with
After judgment has been obtained against you
The information set out below applies to most cases, situations and circumstances but with some occasional exceptions.
After judgment has been obtained against the debtor (now called the judgment debtor) is the least desirable and effective time to try to make a payment arrangement and, if the judgment debtor does try, the payments will likely have to be aggressive in order to entice the creditor (now called the judgement creditor) to accept the payment arrangement being offered. Immediately after obtaining a judgment, the judgment creditor is now able to take enforcement proceedings against the judgment debtor and so in all likelihood will not be willing or agreeable to accept small payments or payments of an amount totalling less than the full amount of the judgment.
Nonetheless, there are some circumstances, occasions or situations where a judgment creditor may accept term payments depending on the judgment debtor’s ability, or inability, to pay and there are no assets for the judgment creditor to attach, seize or garnish.
Settling a matter requires skill and experience which should always include written Terms of Settlement in order to protect the judgment debtor from a judgment creditor coming back again for more money. I recommend that you consult with an experienced paralegal or lawyer before doing your own settlement.
This article concludes the four part series on payment terms.