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Sweet marketing music

Tanner Montague came to town from Seattle having never owned his own music venue before. He’s a musician himself, so he has a pretty good sense of good music, but he also wandered into a crowded music scene filled with concert venues large and small.But the owner of Green Room thinks he found a void in the market. It’s lacking, he says, in places serving between 200 and 500 people, a sweet spot he thinks could be a draw for both some national acts not quite big enough yet for arena gigs and local acts looking for a launching pad.“I felt that size would do well in the city to offer more options,” he says. “My goal was to A, bring another option for national acts but then, B, have a great spot for local bands to start.”Right or wrong, something seems to be working, he says. He’s got a full calendar of concerts booked out several months. How did he, as a newcomer to the market in an industry filled with competition, get the attention of the local concertgoer?

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by Michelle Dove
August 2007

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Try conciliation court before writing off smaller debts

Conciliation court gives individuals and corporations an opportunity to obtain judgments against debtors quickly and inexpensively. It also allows for collection on debts that might otherwise be too small to pursue in district court.

In Minnesota, corporations and individuals can bring civil actions in conciliation court without an attorney. Conciliation court claim amounts must be less than $7,500 and the action must generally be filed in the county where the debtor resides or where its principal place of business is located. If the amount of the debt is more than $7,500, you may reduce your claim to $7,500, but doing so waives any future claim to the rest of the debt.

Got assets?

When deciding to pursue a claim in conciliation court, you should consider the likelihood of recovering from the debtor if a judgment is entered. Specifically, consider whether the debtor has any assets, bank accounts, accounts receivable or other sources of income that might be used to pay off the judgment.

Even if the debtor doesn’t have assets available, you should think about whether the debtor is likely to be collectable in the future, because the judgment will remain in effect for 10 years.

Finally, if the debtor is a business, verify its correct legal name as filed with the Minnesota Secretary of State and confirm that the debtor has not filed for bankruptcy.

Once you have considered these initial factors, initiating a small claims court action is as simple as completing a form and paying a nominal filing fee. A conciliation court “Statement of Claim and Summons” form is available at www.courts.state.mn.us. The form may be used in any county in Minnesota and may be completed online.

It is generally a good idea to call the conciliation court administrator in the county where you are bringing your action before filing your claim form in order to verify the filing fee (usually about $55) and to request a hearing date.

Some counties allow you to in a few weeks of filing the claim form.

When completing the form, be sure to use the debtor’s correct legal name and include a brief statement of the claim and amount owing. The completed form should be mailed to the conciliation court administrator along with the filing fee. If the claim is less than $2,500, the court administrator will serve the claim form on the debtor. If the claim is more than $2,500, the court administrator will provide instructions on how to serve the debtor. Typically, service can be accomplished by certified mail, return receipt requested, or by personal service.

Prepping for hearing

Once the case is filed with the court, you should start preparing for the conciliation court hearing. If the claim amount is more than $2,500 and you served the claim form on the defendant, you must bring proof of service to the hearing. If service was accomplished by certified mail, the return receipt is adequate proof of service.

If you do not have proof that the defendant was served at the time of the hearing, the court will not allow the action to proceed. If a corporation sends a representative to the hearing, the representative must bring an executed power of attorney form in order to appear on behalf of the corporation.

Documents that may help the judge evaluate the case should be presented at the hearing. Examples of helpful documents include photographs or copies of contracts, invoices or correspondence related to the dispute.

You should bring three copies of all relevant documents to the hearing: one copy for the judge, one copy for the other party and one copy for your use. In Minnesota, conciliation court is not a court of record so any documents that are presented to the court will be returned to the parties at the hearing or reviewed by the judge and then thrown away.

Although you may have to wait through other hearings before your case is heard, conciliation court hearings are typically brief. Generally, each party is allowed a few minutes at the hearing to explain its case and present evidence to the judge. The judge may then ask questions of either party.

Once all of the evidence is presented, the judge will either issue a ruling from the bench, or will take the matter under advisement and issue a written opinion within a few weeks of the hearing.

If you receive judgment in your favor, once the judgment is docketed, you can take several actions to attempt to collect.

In order to determine what assets are available for collection, you may ask the court to issue an order for disclosure, which compels the debtor to disclose financial information that may also assist in collection. You can also issue post-judgment discovery to find out more about the debtor’s assets.

Once you have gathered asset information, you may attach bank account funds, garnish wages or take possession of the debtor’s unencumbered property in order to collect on the judgment. At this point, you may also wish to contact an attorney to assist in collection.