How to claim high debts quickly and effectively?

There are different ways to claim high debts quickly and effectively. And depending on the type of debt we are referring to; it will be advisable to go to one or the other. Therefore, if what we want is to claim our money, it will be convenient to analyze the specific case with the assistance of a lawyer specialized in claiming high debts.

The out-of-court claim for high debts

Generally, the fastest and cheapest ways to claim are out-of-court. The problem with going to court is its workload, which will probably introduce delays in our collection expectations. In addition, receiving a lawsuit is an unpleasant situation, so if we are interested in maintaining relations with our debtor once we collect, it could be convenient to avoid the prosecution of the claim.

But the out-of-court debt claim has its limits. The first we will find is that, in general, we will depend on the good faith of the debtor to reach a compromise. But without a doubt, the most important limit is that we will lack executive instruments. 

Let us, therefore, analyze what extrajudicial means we have at our disposal to claim high debts and later see how to overcome the executive obstacle. 

Negotiation and out-of-court settlement of payments 

As the expert lawyers in claiming debts comment, when it comes to claiming the fulfillment of any obligation, the first step is to negotiate with the debtor. Generally, it is enough for our lawyer to contact him to advise him of the enforceability of his obligations. 

If the debtor has the ability to pay, the mere receipt of a formal burofax or letter on the lawyer's letterhead may be enough to force him to pay. The problem when claiming high debts is that our debtor could lack solvency. 

In these cases, it is convenient to negotiate the payment conditions, which is usually done through an out-of-court payment agreement. In this instrument, the payment conditions could be made more flexible, although the most convenient thing will be to obtain a debt recognition.

Debt recognition

We call debt recognition the document by which the debtor declares the existence of a debt with his creditor. Its particularity is that we can raise it to a public deed before a Notary Public. 

In this case, if the debtor does not pay, we will avoid the declaratory phase of a judicial claim, being able to go directly to the executive process. We will detail the difference between one and another stage of the judicial process in the next section. 

Other intervened solutions: conciliation, mediation and arbitration 

Before entering judicial matters, it should be remembered that there are other means of conflict resolution, which we can resort to when we need to claim high debts. One of them is conciliation, which will help us record the negotiations. However, since the conciliator does not have to contribute to the settlement, it is an avenue that will only be effective in a limited number of cases.

Mediation may be more effective, particularly if our debtor is willing to pay and we want to take care of our relationship with him. In this case, the lawyer will help us bring positions closer together, facilitating the arrival of an out-of-court payment agreement.

Both options will give us access to agreements with executive force, as with the recognition of debts. Although in the case of high debts it is usually better to go to arbitration. In this case, the arbitrator will issue an award, which has the same force as a judicial judgment. Therefore, we will have the advantage of going to a faster and more flexible process, although we run the risk that it will be more expensive than the trial and that the arbitrator may choose a Solomonic solution that prevents us from recovering all our money.

How to claim a high debt judicially

Not everyone is aware that when we talk about filing a civil lawsuit, we may actually be referring to three different types of processes. 

First there are the precautionary processes. Its objective is to request the adoption of guarantee or provision measures, which prevent the occurrence or aggravation of an injury. For example, if we want to recover a high debt and we know that our debtor has assets, we could request a certain degree of intervention to prevent them from wasting it to our detriment. 

More generalized are declarative processes, which are those aimed at recognizing a legal situation. In our case, the objective would be for a judge to declare that there is a high debt of which we are creditors, ordering its payment to the debtor. But if the debtor does not comply with this obligation, we will still have to go to an executive process, where the Public Powers may act against the debtor's assets. 

Well, if we are interested in claiming a high debt in court, we must know that the ideal path would go through:

1.- In the first place, analyze if there is any privileged process applicable to our case, such as the payment order.

2.- Secondly, study if we can request precautionary measures (it is not the most frequent).

3.- Next, achieve judicial recognition of the debt through a declaratory process.

4.- And only if our debtor does not pay, go to the executive process. 

What are the judicial channels at our disposal?

In general, it will be recommended that we go to the order for payment process as long as the debt is liquid, past due, enforceable and is documented. We talked about this issue in previous articles, also dedicating a mention to the notarial order. 

In the event that the debt is not documented, before going to the executive procedure we will have to go through a declaration, which depending on its amount will have the verbal or ordinary form. Given that we are talking about high debts, the most frequent will be that we will be subject to an ordinary trial, which requires more time and especially more expertise on the part of our lawyer. 

In short, there are different ways, both judicial and friendly, to claim high debts. Each of them has its advantages and disadvantages and is applicable to some cases or others. So, the creditor's best option is always to consult with a debt recovery attorney.

Contact us, and our debt specialist lawyers will study your specific case. We Have:

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