Debt recovered via the courts is dealt with in different courts depending on the amount of the debt, such as:
• Up to €15,000 is heard in the District Court
• From €15,001 to €75,000 in the Circuit Court
• From €75,001 upwards in the High Court

There are three stages in the procedure of seeking to recover debt:

Demand Letter

This opens the process and if there is no response, it moves to the next stage. If there is a response, then that could conclude the matter satisfactorily for the plaintiff/ creditor.

Legal Proceedings
If there is no response to the Demand Letter, then proceedings are issued in one of the three courts according to the size of the debt.

Enforcement of Debt
Assuming judgment is given in the court then the order of the court can be enforced.
There are several options for enforcement which your solicitor can advise you on, these include:
• Register the judgment and this will appear in Stubbs Gazette
• Give the order of the court to the County Sheriff for execution
• Judgment mortgage
• Seek an installment order for payment, Bankruptcy, Garnishee Order.

While this looks straight forward, it should be noted that a defendant can use the court system to delay the process. A defendant is entitled to contest the claim and even if they have no legitimate defence, they can drag out the process. It is here where your solicitor can assist in seeking to prevent the defendant delaying unnecessarily or obstructing the case from proceeding.