Louisiana Collection Law

At the present time Louisiana law favors the creditor as opposed to the debtor havens of some other states. The disadvantage of Louisiana is that court costs are on a "pay as you go" system and may be considerable depending upon the actions necessary to take a lawsuit to judgment and execution upon assets. Therefore, it is rather difficult to project court costs for any given claim. Collection matters are filed in city courts when available to take advantage of lower costs and shorter delays for trials. When a judgment is final garnishment of wages and bank accounts are the preferred methods of execution upon assets.

The challenge for the creditor client is to obtain as much information possible on a customer in the event the account goes into arrears and to use maximum measures to obtain voluntary payment. Court action and the attendant costs should be reserved for the debtor who refuses/fails to pay when assets are available or when there is a disputed debt and the creditor has a good legal position.

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