Small Claims Court

Just go to the court house and fill out the paperwork. I think it cost me about 75 bucks in Wood County, not sure what it costs in Lucas. Usually they will want you to try mediation first and if that doesn't work it will go to court and if you win the Judge can garnish her wages.

Personally, If it's over $1000 I would get a lawyer’s advice. If it is under $1000 I would really write it off to one of the best courses I could have taken education wise and I mean that in absolutely no condescending way. I think I have had similar lessons in life where a few bumps and bruises saved me many broken bones down the way.

Most courts have their small claims court procedures explained on their web site. Filing fees are minimal.

I sued, won and had to collect the judgements by garnishment. Its a big hassle. It will work. But be prepared to spend a lot of time filling out paper work, meeting deadlines and learning the court rules of collection. You will need solid proof that you loaned the money. Small claims court monetary limit is $3,000.

Similar story ... lent a coworker some money for rent, then she bought a new sofa and started bragging about her weekend travel :-( Two years later, she got me a funky old coffeepot at a garage sale to make up for it. I called it the "$250 Coffee Pot" until I threw it out. Since then, I have successfully resisted the urge to lend money to friends or coworkers. Danneskjold is right.

Friends, co-workers, or family...unless you are completely prepared to be a hard-ass to get your money back (which most people are not willing to be), you will probably have to look at any such money transfer as a gift. Which in turn forces you to consider "can I give this person $XXXX?"

And force anyone you LOAN money to sign a promissory note with standard repayment terms (including interest). It's the only way you can really take them to court and expect to win something.

You lent her a sizable amount of women? (Sorry, couldn't help myself!)

DUH thanks WW....Ilent her $!,300.00 ( one thousand and 300 hundred dollars). It is clearly noted on the check that it is an IOU to be repaid! Skanky ass bitch! The whole situation makes my blood boi! Good night all and thanks for all the good advice!

Based on the facts as stated, I'd say only Judge Greg "Maffis" Mathis has jurisdiction over this.
Facts at hand:
Tattoos.
Skanks.
STDs.
Woodville Rental Car Loan.
Posse.
Homeboys.

You can file in small claims for anything under $3,000 so you're covered there. You must file in the jurisdiction of the defendent (your boss) so you'll need to be sure that you pick the court for her home address.

Toledo Municipal Court covers Toledo, Ottawa Hills and Washington Township - they have the small claims forms on line. I'm pretty sure that Oregon, Maumee and Sylvania courts do as well.

Don't sign your form - that has to be done in front of a clerk.

You'll also have to fill out a praecipe form which causes the court to send a notice to your boss that she's being sued in small claims. This is sent by certified mail and until the service is made (she signs for it), the case is on hold.

Once she is served, you can fill out another form to subpoena witnesses and then the case is set for a hearing. Standard procedure is to offer mediation prior to the actual court case. If agreement is reached during mediation, the mediator will help document the agreement for both parties to follow. If not, the case is set for trial.

If you win your case, you will have a judgment against your boss - that's all. It's still up to you to collect the money owed and you can do that by filing a garnishment against any bank account or wages. There are more forms to fill out (these you'll have to purchase yourself - usually from a place like Toledo Legal News or certain print shops) and more fees to pay in order to do this.

Getting the judgment is the relatively easy part - the obligation to collect lies with you and can be daunting.

Good luck!

Oh - one other thing. There is a procedure called "Proceedings in Aid" where you can have the court summon her to a hearing where she must give you information you need in order to file a garnishment, lien, etc...

If you follow Maggie's instructions, please also remember to leave ALL editorial comments out of your case. Refer to the defendent as Ms. (Last name), NOT big fat blond, bar hag, poor excuse for a nurse, STD carrying "country girl" tattoo having skank, etc. Use only facts. Do not include any information not directly related to the loan. Do not suggest, guess, suppose, assume, or elaborate. State the basic facts related to the agreement or meeting of the minds between the two of you regarding the loan and nonpayment. (ie: dates, etc.) The judge will ask for more information if he or she is curious.

If you're inclined to be on TV, your description of your boss sounds perfect for a Judge Judy type show. The judge would have a field day with her...yikes!

"About half the practice of a decent lawyer consists of telling would-be clients that they are damned fools and should stop."

Elihu Root

Words I live by. Bringing a lawsuit and all the attendant aggravation will only make your blood boil at a higher temperature. Chalk it up as a lesson learned and move on.

RockChick, your experience sounds a little familiar. Does this person work on UT's HSC?

A few thoughts:

1. Agreed with the above posters who recmmend never loaning money to needy/wacky friends and relatives: more often than not they will abuse your trust. Also, if people bail them out, they will not learn important lessons about delaying gratification and saving money. Most people have to taste a little poverty to appreciate why they should save money.

2. Maggie is correct: getting a judgment should be a slam dunk, but locating and accessing her assets to collect can be very tough. She likely has little in the bank, and if she has kids the amount that can be garnished from a paycheck is much lower.

3. I would not waste time calling the Board of Nursing; being a deadbeat is cruddy, but probably not a behavior that can affect her professional licensure.

4. $1300 is more than enough for me (personally) to take the legal route. I would not be able to write off the amount. I say be prepared to file the claim; at the very least she might decide to pay the judgment off if she ever gets her credit straightened around and wants to buy a house.

5. I would first approach the loan recipient and attempt to work this out without legal hassles, assuming that you have not already tried to pressure her. Say something like this: "The last thing I want to do is take this to court, but I will if you force me to. I would like to work out a payment plan where you pay me $50 a week until this is paid off." In all likelihood she will make 3-4 payments and stop, but at least you will get some money out of this plus strengthen the paper trail on the loan.

Do they work on UT's HSC, FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE MEDICAL COLLEGE OF OHIO, you mean?????

In today's economy, I would rather keep my job and chalk it up as a loss than sue my boss over a 1k. I can see a pink slip coming in exchange for that complaint.

I would suspect that a boss could get in trouble for borrowing money from a subordinate.

If RockChick were fired for trying to collect the money that her boss owes her, I bet she'd have a much bigger lawsuit on her hands.

I few years back I lent MY BOSS of all people a sizeable amt.

Do you still salute this piece of work?

So now you know better than to loan money. Unless you want to go into the banking business, that is.

I agree with HistoryMike. $1300 would send me straight to small claims court, and while it's true that collecting is a different story, it isn't impossible. In fact, collecting can be a very long walk from impossible.

If you still report to this woman, or even if you don't, you might consider going to the personnel department. Asking a subordinate for money is never a good idea.

I encourage you to stick to the facts and skip the commentary. Sure she's a skank and all that, but no one who can help you out with this will care one iota and in fact comments like that can hurt your case. Think: Everyone connected with the court system already knows what she is. They deal with people like her all the time. Since you can't have what you really want - your bread back with interest and your ex-boss doing 25 to life in prison - just settle for getting your bread back.

If RockChick were fired for trying to collect the money that her boss owes her, I bet she'd have a much bigger lawsuit on her hands.

Need the lawyers (Rhetoric, AceFace) to chime in on this one.

From the first post, regarding if she still reports to the Country Girl:

"I was her subordinate at the time"

I used to "chalk it up to life's lessons," but I learned that doesn't get your money back. Too many times this BS happens and it's getting worse. The only times I got my money back after getting scammed is when I fought hard to get it back. And I mean do everything you can for as long as it takes to get your money back. Three times in my life I decided not to let this kind of crap go and each time I got my money back, though everyone told me to just "let it go." You work hard for your money. I didn't loan anyone money, but I paid people to do work, i.e., new roof, remodel bathrooms, etc. I paid for materials, with the balance promised when the work was done. In two instances, they skipped town with my money. These people don't think you'll go after them. They depend on that. I think most people do give up.

Also, find out if this woman has a criminal record. I learned that about an electrician who I paid to rewire my home years ago. He did a few hours work, then left town with my money. I found out that he was on probation for a drug charge, and he would go back to jail if he broke the law again. If she has a record, ask a lawyer to write a letter to her warning that if she doesn't pay you back by a certain date, you will be taking this to court or meeting with the prosecutor. When my lawyer wrote the electrician a letter, this guy paid back most of my money just a few days later. So find out all you can about this woman's past, and go to work on it. There's more than one way to skin a cat. Good luck!

Also, find out if this woman has a criminal record.

There's some good advice!

I never thought about that. Thanks for the tip!

What about giving this woman a one time offer of letting her pay back only 75-80% of what's owed? Sure it sucks to take the hit on the 20-25% but it might be enough of an incentive for her to actually pay you and you avoid the headache of court and collections.

I would put it in writing with a deadline. If not paid, you go to court.

That's not a bad idea, JoeyGee.

Odds are, RockChick might not end up with the full amount owed going to court anyhow. (Any court or collection costs, plus if she has to take time off work, etc.)

If possible, it might be better to get some of the money without the expense/hassle of court proceedings.

That's assuming she can collect, of course!

"What about giving this woman a one time offer of letting her pay back only 75-80% of what's owed?"

That's a good point. I got 75 percent of my money back from the electrician - an amount I could live with.