"Collections" refers to the process by which creditors attempt to get nonpaying debtors to pay what is owed. There are numerous laws in Ramsey County, Minnesota regulating the conduct of collections agences.

What if I Am Owed Money in Ramsey County, Minnesota?

If someone owes you money and won't pay, you have some legal options to seek repayment of your debt. However, you need to be careful in this area. There are many laws and regulations detailing what debt collectors can and cannot do. Breaking these laws, even inadvertently, can harm your chances at collecting, and maybe even expose you to civil penalties.

For example, it should go without saying that creditors are not allowed to use threatened or actual violence when trying to collect. They are also not allowed to use abusive language to the debtor, or contact a third party about the debt.

What you can do, however, is send an invoice of the debt to the debtor, along with a firm (but civil) demand for timely payment. If the debt is significant, you might also want to hire a collection agency in Ramsey County, Minnesota. You should make sure that any agency you hire is reputable, and has not been cited for violations of the laws governing collections.

What if Someone Is Trying to Collect Money Against Me in Ramsey County, Minnesota?

If you actually owe the money being sought, and you are able to pay it, you should of course do so. If the collection caller is behaving cordially, you should do the same. Even if the caller doesn't behave in a cordial manner, you should resist the temptation to respond in kind, and ask to speak with a supervisor, or simply end the conversation. Whatever you do, you should never ignore the issue. This will not make the problem go away.

Luckily, you have some options in Ramsey County, Minnesota. First of all, you should attempt to directly contact the creditor, and see if some adjusted payment plan can be worked out. If this doesn't work, you can ask the collectors to stop contacting you by phone, and they will usually be obliged to do so. Of course, this doesn't make the debt go away, but it might give you some time to collect yourself and prepare a legal defense. Once this happens, the collection agency can only contact you to inform you that it intends to sue you for the debt owed.

If you have hired a lawyer in Ramsey County, Minnesota, they might advise that you file for bankruptcy. Of course, whether or not this is a good idea depends heavily on the facts of your particular case, so you should not do so until an attorney has reviewed the facts and determined that bankruptcy is a viable solution.

How Can a Ramsey County, Minnesota Collections Attorney Help?

If you think that the collection agency is violating the law in its attempts to collect, you should probably call a Ramsey County, Minnesota attorney, since such conduct on the part of the creditor might actually give you a claim for damages against it.

If you are thinking about bankruptcy, a good Minnesota bankrutpcy attorney can help guide you through the process.