Business & Company: Debt Collection - Guides
Debt Collection
6. Obtaining a Judgment
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Last updated: 17 Jul 2015
- A default court judgment can usually be obtained after one month if:
- the debtor does not reply to your statement or claim or
- if the debtor does not defend the claim.
- This length of time depends on the state or territory and the court. You can ask a lawyer or court registry staff to confirm the length of time you have to wait.
- When you ask the court for a default judgement you need to have filed two statements that have been properly witnessed by either a justice of the peace or a lawyer. These are:
- an ‘affidavit of service’. This is a written statement setting out the details of how the statement of claim was delivered to the defendant; and
- an ‘affidavit in support’. This is a written document setting out the full amount of the debt in detail including court costs and interest.
- Once the debtor’s 28-day response period has passed there is a set amount of days that the creditor can apply for a default judgement. Check the court rules or ask a lawyer for details about the time frames in your location.
- If default judgment has been awarded against you there is also a certain period of time in which you can seek to have the default judgment set aside. If this applies to you then you should seek legal advice immediately. Our free Find a Lawyer directory may assist you in contacting the help you need.
- If a creditor gets a default judgement from the court then they have won the case. It does not matter if the debtor did not actually owe them the money.
- Once the default judgment is obtained a creditor is in a position to initiate further recovery proceedings against the debtor such as wage deductions or other measures.
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