Case

Hi - what does the contract say? We are looking for the choice of law clause. If the contract provides for NY choice of law then fantastic! You hire an attorney in New York, send them a demand letter and file in a New York State Court - on the day after the expiration date for your letter. Once you get your judgment in New York, you hire a collections attorney in Montana to go collect your judgement (if they won't pay up - its amazing how much they are willing to pay when you get a local lawyer to put a lien on their house!) If the choice of law clause says Montana - you can (i) be certain and hire a lawyer in Montana and follow the same process or (ii) be aggressive, hire and file in New York, just to ensure that they have to hire a New York lawyer to get the case dismissed. The second situation would be if you think they would rather settle with you than pay someone in New York to get the case dismissed. There is a lot of strategy to consider - but the most important thing in any of this is to be decisive and move forward with a lawyer quickly once you decide on a course of action. I've seen clients who had stronger cases lose in the end because the other side was aggressive in Court and had their lawyer on a retainer immediately and filed before my client could finish "considering her options."

Yes, my firm handles breach of contract and business litigation issues. I am a New York attorney with over 20 years of legal and business experience. I have been a Judicial Clerk to a Civil Court Judge, a Hearing Officer with the City of New York and a Small Claims Arbitrator. I have also defended clients in AAA arbitration. If you you would to engage my services, you can contact me on the contracts counsel website and I would be happy to assist.

Hi - what does the contract say? We are looking for the choice of law clause. If the contract provides for NY choice of law then fantastic! You hire an attorney in New York, send them a demand letter and file in a New York State Court - on the day after the expiration date for your letter. Once you get your judgment in New York, you hire a collections attorney in Montana to go collect your judgement (if they won't pay up - its amazing how much they are willing to pay when you get a local lawyer to put a lien on their house!) If the choice of law clause says Montana - you can (i) be certain and hire a lawyer in Montana and follow the same process or (ii) be aggressive, hire and file in New York, just to ensure that they have to hire a New York lawyer to get the case dismissed. The second situation would be if you think they would rather settle with you than pay someone in New York to get the case dismissed. There is a lot of strategy to consider - but the most important thing in any of this is to be decisive and move forward with a lawyer quickly once you decide on a course of action. I've seen clients who had stronger cases lose in the end because the other side was aggressive in Court and had their lawyer on a retainer immediately and filed before my client could finish "considering her options."

It depends on the terms of the contract. You can stipulate in the contract which state's law you would like to apply. Laws relating to bailments or the UCC would apply.

You are on the right in getting the DA involved. However, your issue is very specific and you need someone with experience and expertise to assist you going further. I encourage you to post your job to the website seeking a lawyer licensed in the state you are in and who has experience in handling cases such as this so that you will have an experienced advocate by your side in getting to a resolution. All the best Donya Gordon