Debt Collection Lawyers in Lucca | Debt Recovery Legal Services
​Dimarco & Partners International Law Firm
Our Debt Collection Lawyers in Lucca provide debt recovery legal services in favor of foreign entities. Our experience in this field permits us to collect significant amounts of money in favor of foreign multinational and medium-small companies. Our Law Firm already takes care of the debt collection in favor of multinational companies handling more than 500 cases per month. We believe that the approach in debt recovery has to be methodological and for this reason we divide our activities in precise phases:
  • Analysis of the debtor set in Lucca;
  • Extrajudicial phase: drafting of a formal legal notice of payment against the debtor located in Lucca;
  • Court action in Lucca;
  • Enforcement procedure on properties, bank account or credits belonging to the italian debtor located in Lucca.
After the analysis of the debtor resident in Lucca, our Lawyers draft the formal legal notice of payment. In this stage our Law Firm will try to reach a transaction with the debtor, avoiding the judicial action. The importance of this phase is not just warning the debtor that a judicial action is going to start but it has also a further meaning. Commercial credits have a prescription period of five years: it means that if the creditor waits more than five years without interrupting the prescription, his right will be extinguished. The legal notice of payment has the function to interrupt the limitation period (ex. a credit arisen on 1st of November 2010 it will expire on 1st of November 2015; if a legal notice of payment is sent on 25th of October 2015, the prescription period will run again and the credit will be extinguished on 25th of October 2020).
                                                                THE COURT ACTIONS IN LUCCA:
  • Decreto Ingiuntivo (Order of Payment) for certain, liquid and payable credits:
It is the most common and fast procedure for cases concerning unpaid commercial invoices. This court action is called "decreto ingiuntivo" and it is developed inaudita altera parte (that means without the presence of the debtor). Our debt collection Lawyers in Lucca submit the recourse to the Court  (Tribunale di Lucca) asking to the Judge to issue the order of payment. The following documentation is needed:
  1. unpaid invoices translated into italian and authenticated;
  2. documents of transport (if there is a delivery of goods);
  3. contract or confirmation order;
  4. recognition of debt (a written document from the debtor that admits the debt), even if this is not compulsory. The presence of this document permits us to require the injunction temporarily enforceable.
Once we receive the documentation, we may start our debt collection: the decreto ingiuntivo is delivered to the court and If there is a recognition of debt, the order of payment is temporarily enforceable and our Lawyers in Lucca may proceed shortly with the enforcement. If this document is missing, the provision is not temporarily enforceable. The Court of Lucca normally takes 3/4 weeks to release the injunction. Once it is released from the judge, we provide the notification (often via registered email if the debtor is a corporate entity) and the debtor has 40 days to file an opposition, starting an ordinary action. If there isn't an opposition in the term of 40 days, the order of payment becomes final and binding.
  •  The ordinary action:
In case that the credits doesn't arise from an unpaid invoice it is not probably certain, liquid and payable. The typical case for corporates is the wrongful breach of a contract. In these kind of cases the agreements often contains a penalty clause to quantify the amounts dued from the part that terminated the contract unlawfully. Even if at first sight there is a clear determination of the credit, it is not possible to ask for an order of payment because the court has to ascertain the credit and the breach of contract. For this reason it will be necessary to start an ordinary action in front of the Court of Lucca. It is possible to check the various phases of the ordinary action in the section concerning the litigation in Italy.
In case the debt collection is positive and we obtain an enforcement order, our lawyers proceed with its notification, attaching a further deed called precetto, and after ten days from the positive reception of the deeds from the debtor, they can proceed with the next steps:
  1. Enforcement of the bank account belonging to the debtor located in Lucca;
  2. Enforcement of the real estate belonging to debtor located in Lucca;
  3. Enforcement of goods belonging to the debtor located in Lucca;
  4. Enforcement of credits belonging to the debtor located in Lucca.
We look forward to cooperate with You.
FAQ
  1. Do I need an attorney in Lucca to start a debt collection case? Yes, only attorneys may proceed judicially. The debt collection agencies are not entitled to do that work in Italy. It is not possible the personal defense, you may only appoint an Italian lawyer that has a regular license and that is duly registered at the bar association.
  2. Is Dimarco & Partners International Law Firm entitled to represent the Clients in Court proceedings in Lucca? Yes, our Law Firm is registered at the bar association of Milan with the number 2013002007 and may represent the Client in front of any Italian court, included the Court of Lucca.
  3. I am a foreign company and I want to start a debt collection case in Lucca. Which documents do you need? We need the invoices, documents of transport, contract or confirmation order and any relevant correspondence.
  4. My debtor located in Lucca recognized in writing the debt, do I have some benefits from that? Yes, we may obtain an order of payment temporarily enforceable, that means we may be entitled to enforce almost immediately.
  5. An Italian company located in Lucca sued me in Italy but it is evident the lack of the Italian jurisdiction, what do I do? In any case if you are sued in Italy you always have to hire a lawyer and file a professional defense. Differently, even if there is a lack of jurisdiction and you don't partecipate in the court trial, the Italian creditor will win the case and he will have a sentence or an order of payment final and binding.
  6. In case my collection is positive, am I entitled to collect also the legal fees from the debtor? Yes, on general basis every amount we charge to the Client may be refundable from the debtor (of course the Judge may entitle an higher or lower refund but, on general basis, everything shall be recovered.
  7. What do I do if I have an order of payment temporarily enforceable against a debtor located in Lucca? We may send a first deed called precetto together with the order of payment and after 10 days we may start the enforcement (real estates, bank accounts, warehouse or credits).
  8. I made a loan agreement between individuals, may I receive an order of payment even if I am not a corporate entity? Of course yes, the order of payment may work also between individuals, the important thing is that the credit may be considered certain, liquid and payable.
  9. What is the limitation period to recover a credit? The general rule is 10 years, but depending on the kind of credit there could be different terms. Many courts consider the limitation periods of a credit subjected to the term of 5 years.
  10. Do you provide the service on the basis of a "no cure no pay" policy? No, in Italy it is unlawful to work on the basis of the "no cure no pay" policy. A lawyer that would use that policy may be suspended between 2 and 6 months from the bar association.