I’m a US citizen living in BC. About 5 years ago I forgot to pay a bill of about $90. Instead of contacting me, two weeks later this company decided to send it right to collections - with the fees that brought the total up to about $150. I went and paid the bill directly with the company, with cash, and got a receipt. I told the collections company I paid the bill directly to their client and mailed them a copy of the receipt. That was the end of that.
Now, a new collection company has my account and has decided to go after me for the fees - which at this point is about $100. They sent a letter to my old US address. I haven’t seen it yet but a family member down there told me about it. I still have the receipt someplace, but yet have been able to find it (because of moving and all)
I’m currently in BC and plan on staying. I don’t have a bank account in the US anymore (I do but it only has about $20 in it). I’ve brought all my money over the border with me.
Is there anything this US based collections company can do? Can they even serve me papers over the border?
Yes and no.
How’s that for the typical lawyer answer.
Have they insisted upon receiving the fees knowing you’ve paid the underlying debt? Do they know where you live now, and that you intend it to be permanent? Will they settle the debt for some relatively trivial sum, allowing the debt to be closed? Sounds easier to do that then to worry.
Of course, the longer answer is that they can file in American courts to obtain a judgment. They don’t need to establish service of papers upon you if they can use the alternative service methods of the state in which the case if filed. Likely, you’d end up with a default judgment against you, which, if the amount were sufficient, they might attempt to collect via the Canadian court system. You might be able to defend in Canada on the basis of failure to serve you, etc., but it’s highly improbable that the collection agency would ever bother with this folderol for $100. More likely they’ll simply keep trying to ding you and then sell it off to the next agency, which will keep it going ad nauseum.
Worse, IANAC but one has to wonder whether this can ding your credit rating. Collections database are sold and sold, this one has been pinged again. And the 7 years thing is based on the date of last activity.
They could also sue you in BC, which would save them the trouble of trying to enforce a US judgment in BC. All of this assumes that the statute of limitations hasn’t run on any potential lawsuit.
This is, of course ;), complicated by that fact that many jurisdictions will borrow the statute of limitations from the jurisdiction where the debt arose if the local statute has already expired.
Short synopsis: some Canadians buy a residential plot of land in Florida. Someone in Florida tries to buy it, for ~$8,000 US. There was a mistake in the description of the land and the sale falls through. American purchasers sue Canadian vendors in the Florida courts. Canadian vendors file a defence, but don’t take further steps because of the small amount in issue, and because a Canadian lawyer advises them that the US judgment would not be enforced in Canada.
Purchasers get default judgment against vendors for $260,000 US. Purchasers take steps to enforce it against Canadian vendors in the Ontario courts. By the time it goes to the Supreme Court of Canada, the $8,000 US, with interest, has blossomed into ~$800,000 Canadian. :eek:
Supreme Court holds that US judgment enforceable in Ontario courts.
(Presumably, somewhere, a negligence suit has been started against the Canadian lawyer who advised that the US judgment was not enforceable in Canada… )
I just mention this to show that it is possible. Whether something like that could happen in your case, I have no idea. If you’re really concerned about it, you should consult a lawyer in B.C., not a bunch of nameless electrons on a message board.
And I adopt my learned friend Gfactor’s most excellent disclaimer.
