Collection Newsletter

Glossary of Legal Terms

Capias – [See “Body Attachment” above]

Cause Of Action – [See “Action” above]

Chattel – Goods or other personal property

Chattel Mortgage – A security interest in goods or other personal property

Citation To Discover Assets – In some jurisdictions, a legal process to enforce a judgment, creating a judgment lien on a judgment-debtor’s assets, and requiring the judgment-debtor or a third-party to appear for asset examination

Claim – Any assertion of a right to payment

Collateral – Goods or property subject to a security interest

Commercial Claim – An assertion of a right to payment which arises from goods sold or leased, services rendered, or monies advanced, in the conduct of a business or profession

Commission – A sum of money payable to us or an
attorney for services rendered in connection with the collection of a claim, usually contingent and calculated as a percentage of the amounts collected

Common Law – The various principles and rules governing persons and property in a state, which come from court decisions rather than from legislative enactments

Complaint – A document, filed with a court, stating a plaintiff’s claims, used to start a lawsuit in most jurisdictions

Conditional Sale – An installment sale whereby the seller delivers goods to the buyer, but where title to the goods remains with the seller until the buyer has made full payment

Conflict Of Interest – Circumstances which prevent an attorney from representing a creditor on a claim, often because the attorney represents or has represented the debtor

Consideration – The goods, services, money or other value exchanged between parties to a contract

Consignee (Sales) – One to whom goods or personal property are transferred for sale to another, where title remains with the transferring party (the “consignor”) until the goods or property are sold

Consignment (Sales) – A transfer of goods from one party (the “consignor”) to another (the “consignee”) for sale to a third party, title to the goods remaining with the consignor until the goods are sold

Consignor (Sales) – One who transfers goods to another (the “consignee”) for sale, retaining title to the goods until the goods are sold

Constable – [See “Sheriff” below], in some jurisdictions

Construction Lien – [See “Mechanic’s Lien” below]

Contempt – The willful disregard for, or disobedience of, a court order or process

Contingent Suit Fee – A suit fee, the payment of which depends entirely upon whether some portion of the claim is collected

Contract – An agreement for the exchange of goods, services, money or other value, between two or more persons or entities, which may be oral or written, stated expressly or implied by law

Conversion (Bankruptcy) – The changing of a bankruptcy case from one chapter to another, usually from Chapter 11 or Chapter 13 to Chapter 7

Conversion (Property) – The wrongful taking of property from another for one’s own use

Conveyance – The transfer of title to or an interest in real property

Corporation – A business entity created under state law, which exists and operates independently of its one or more owners (“shareholders”), who are shielded from personal liability for debts incurred in the ordinary course of business

Cost Advance – [See “Court Costs” below]

Counterclaim – A lawsuit filed by a defendant against a plaintiff in response to a lawsuit started by the plaintiff

Countercomplaint – [See “Counterclaim” above]

Countersuit – [See “Counterclaim” above]

Court Costs – A sum of money deposited with an attorney so the attorney can pay required court filing fees and service of process costs, usually recoverable as part of a judgment

Creditor – A person or entity who asserts a claim for payment against a debtor

Debtor – A person or entity alleged to be responsible for payment of a claim to a creditor

Declaratory Action – A lawsuit where the court is not asked to enter a money judgment, but rather is asked only to determine the rights and status of the parties with respect to each other

Default – A failure to do something required, usually said of a failure to perform an obligation under a contract

Default Judgment – A judgment sometimes granted when a defendant fails to respond to a lawsuit

Defendant – The one against whom a lawsuit is filed

Defunct – The condition of having ceased to operate, usually said of a business entity which is no longer operating

Demand Letter – A letter sent by an attorney to a debtor, notifying the debtor that a creditor has retained the attorney to collect a claim, and giving the debtor a final opportunity to resolve the claim before a lawsuit is filed

Deponent – One who testifies at a deposition

Deposition – A discovery process by which one party to a lawsuit asks oral questions, requiring oral answers, of another party or of a witness, usually in the presence of a stenographer who records the questions and answers verbatim

Detinue – A lawsuit to recover possession of goods or personal property rightfully obtained but wrongfully detained by a debtor

Discharge – A final order in a bankruptcy case releasing a debtor from responsibility for a debt or debts

Discovery – Generic term for various pre-trial procedures by which a party to a lawsuit can obtain information from another party or a witness

Dishonor – A refusal to accept or pay a note, check or other draft when presented

Dismissal – An order ending a lawsuit before judgment or a bankruptcy case before discharge

Dissolved – The condition of having been legally terminated, usually said of a corporation or other business entity which has failed to comply with the statutes regulating its existence

Docket – The collective group of lawsuits pending before a court or a judge, or a breif notation of an order, motion or other court event to the official record of a lawsuit

Domestic Corporation – A corporation, in the state under which laws the corporation was created

Domestication – The process of transferring a judgment from the state in which it was obtained to another state, usually for purposes of execution

Duces Tecum – [See “Subpoena Duces Tecum” below]