Discussion:
What is the name of your state?Louisiana
I have currently been sued by a designer bag company for selling reproductions of their bags online. I was unaware that doing this was illegal, but I also realize that that's no excuse. However this isn't my question. It is only a civil lawsuit and I'm unsure of how much they are suing me for. My question is if it gets into $100's of thousands of dollars and I can't pay what happens next? Do you go to jail if you can't pay the fines? What legally can they do to recover their money? I've never been in a lawsuit for anything before and I have no idea how any of this works. Any help would be appreciated. I'm just trying to understand my options.
Answer:
It is only a civil lawsuit and I'm unsure of how much they are suing me for. My question is if it gets into $100's of thousands of dollars and I can't pay what happens next? Well, if they get a judgment and you can't pay it, you either a) declare bankruptcy, b) allow them to garnish your wages and pay what you can, or c) leave the country.
Do you go to jail if you can't pay the fines? No. There is no "debtor's prison" in the U.S.
What legally can they do to recover their money? They can file suit to garnish your wages (up to whatever the law says they are allowed), they can seize property, etc. You should have a lawyer, your lawyer can give you some idea of what what they could potentially come after.
If you don't already have a lawyer, get one. If you don't have any significant assets, it's not worth it for them to go through all of the time and money to sue you, they may be willing to settle for something painful, but at least affordable.