Some people will go to extreme lengths to avoid their financial responsibilities. If you have a debtor that has tried to avoid paying what they owe your company, you likely already understand how hard people will try to avoid making payments.
They may quit their jobs, change their phone numbers and lie when you try to call them or send them mail. Some people will go to even greater lengths than that. They will move. Changing an address can delay collection activity, but someone will still be subject to the same rules and timelines regardless of where they live.
Those intent on avoiding their financial responsibilities may even move from one state to another to avoid a civil lawsuit enforcing their debts. Can someone avoid their obligation to your business by moving to Florida?
You can always go back to court over the debt
Regardless of where someone originally lived and the nature of the debt, you can likely pursue collection activity even when they move to another state. If you discover that someone who owes you money has relocated to Florida to avoid legal action in a different jurisdiction, you can take action in the Florida civil court.
If you had recently obtained a judgment in another state, you do not need to serve the debtor again and wait for another hearing in court to prove your debt and ask for the right to collect on it. Instead, you can go to the Florida courts to ask them to domesticate the judgment you have from another state. The courts will typically recognize the judgment issued by a judge in another state without requiring that you re-litigate anything.
State lines do not diminish your rights as a creditor
While it may cost more money to locate someone who has crossed state lines to avoid collection activity, you still have rights once you find their new home or place of employment.
Given the effort they have already committed to avoiding their responsibilities, it is not realistic to assume that they will start making good on their application after moving to a new place. Understanding the rules that govern Florida collection efforts and the process necessary to domesticate a foreign judgment in the Florida courts will help your business collect on the money owed to it.
