Getting Judgment Is the Easy Part

Debt recovery and enforcement in Ireland, explained properly: the time limits that decide whether you have a claim at all, the court that will hear it, and — the part most creditors are unprepared for — how a judgment is actually turned into money.

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45+

Years, Established 1981

Creditor

& Debtor Advice

Judgment

& Enforcement

Fees Agreed

in Writing at the Outset

A Judgment Is Not Money

It is the most common misunderstanding in debt recovery, and the most expensive. Obtaining judgment and being paid are two separate exercises. The second one — judgment mortgages, instalment orders, execution through the Sheriff, garnishee, attachment of earnings — is where the work actually is, and where the answer depends entirely on what the debtor has. Which is why the first question here is never “can we win?” but “if we win, will we be paid?”

How Enforcement Actually Works →

Where the Questions Arise

Twelve areas, each written as a proper guide rather than a brochure page — for creditors deciding whether to pursue, and for anyone on the receiving end of a demand.

Debt Recovery in Ireland

The whole sequence, in order - and an honest account of when a debt claim is the wrong tool entirely.

The Letter of Demand

What it should say, what it must never say, and the statutory limits on how payment can be demanded.

Time Limits & the Statute

Six years, twelve years - and the acknowledgment or part payment that restarts the clock for both sides.

Which Court, and Why It Matters

Jurisdictional thresholds, the summary summons, and why the choice affects cost far more than speed.

Summary Judgment & Defences

The fast route to judgment where the debt is not genuinely disputed - and what happens when it is.

Enforcing a Judgment

Judgment mortgages, instalment orders, Sheriff execution, garnishee and attachment. Where most creditors are unprepared.

Commercial Debt & Late Payment

The statutory interest and fixed compensation most Irish businesses never claim on B2B invoices.

Company Debtors

Statutory demands under the Companies Act 2014, winding-up as leverage, and the abuse-of-process line.

Consumer Debt

What a creditor may not do, why consumer debt is different, and where mortgage arrears go instead.

Disputed Debts & Set-Off

When it is not really a debt case - and why suing anyway is the most expensive mistake in this area.

Received a Solicitor’s Letter?

For the person being pursued: what it means, what to do, and the free advice available before you pay anyone.

Costs, Interest & the Economics

What recovery actually costs, what interest you can claim, and why a solicitor’s fee is never a percentage.

A Law Firm, Not a Collection Agency

The distinction is not cosmetic. Fees here are agreed in writing at the outset and are never a percentage of what is recovered — a solicitor may not calculate them that way in contentious business, and a percentage model would in any event distort the advice you get about whether a claim is worth pursuing at all. There is no volume chasing and no collection campaign. And there is a constraint every creditor should know: section 11 of the Consumer Credit Act 1995 makes it an offence to demand payment by means calculated to cause alarm, distress or humiliation, or falsely to imply that proceedings have been or will be issued. How a debt is pursued matters, and not only whether it is owed.

The Sequence, in Order

1. Check the clock. Six years for a simple contract debt under the Statute of Limitations 1957, twelve where the obligation is under seal — and a written acknowledgment or part payment can restart it. Establish the accrual date precisely before anything else. 2. Check the debtor. Property, trading status, employment, guarantors, whether a company is still solvent. This determines whether proceedings are worth issuing, and it is the step most often skipped. 3. Check the dispute. A genuinely disputed debt is not a debt claim; it is litigation, priced and paced entirely differently. 4. Demand properly. A letter that states the sum, the basis and the consequence — without overstepping what the law permits. 5. Proceedings. Usually a summary summons for a liquidated sum, in the court that matches the amount. 6. Enforce. The part that turns paper into payment, and the reason the second question at the first call is always: if we get judgment, what will we enforce against?

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Acting Across Ireland

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Richard O’Shea — Solicitor

Solicitor at Mary Molloy Solicitors, established 1981, with offices at The Ormond Building on Ormond Quay — a short walk from the Four Courts. The firm advises creditors on recovery and enforcement, and, in separate matters, advises debtors who have received demands or proceedings. It is a law firm and not a debt collection agency: fees are agreed in writing at the outset and are never calculated as a percentage or proportion of what is recovered. 01 5827148 · richardoshea@marymolloysolicitors.com · LinkedIn

Debt Recovery - FAQs

Generally six years for a simple contract debt, running from the date the cause of action accrued - broadly, when the debt became due and payable. Where the obligation is contained in a deed or instrument under seal the period is generally twelve years. Those periods come from the Statute of Limitations 1957. The critical refinement, which catches out creditors and rescues debtors, is that a written acknowledgment of the debt or a part payment can start the six-year period running again from the date of that acknowledgment or payment. So a debt that looks long dead may not be, and a debt you thought was safely within time may have been miscalculated from the wrong date. Because the accrual date is fact-sensitive, it is worth establishing precisely rather than assuming.

General information, not legal advice. This website contains general information about Irish law on debt recovery and enforcement. It is not legal advice and does not create a solicitor—client relationship. Every debt turns on its own facts — the documents, the dates, the parties and the debtor’s circumstances — and advice on yours requires a consultation. Statutory thresholds and figures referred to on this site are subject to change and should be confirmed before any step is taken.

A law firm, not a debt collection agency. Mary Molloy Solicitors provides legal advice and representation. It does not operate as a debt collection agency and does not conduct collection campaigns. Fees are agreed in writing with the client at the outset and are never calculated as a percentage or proportion of any sum recovered. In contentious business, a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement.

No outcome is promised. Nothing on this site states or implies that any debt will be recovered, that any asset will be found, that any enforcement step will succeed, or that any claim will succeed. Recovery depends substantially on the debtor’s means, which are frequently unknown at the outset.

How payment may be demanded is regulated. Section 11 of the Consumer Credit Act 1995 makes it an offence to make a demand for payment by means calculated to cause alarm, distress or humiliation, or falsely to represent that legal proceedings have been or will be issued. Nothing on this site should be read as encouraging any such conduct. Mortgage arrears on a principal private residence are dealt with under a separate regulatory framework and are outside the scope of this site.

If you are the person being pursued. Free, confidential and independent money advice is available in Ireland from MABS, the Money Advice and Budgeting Service, and through the Abhaile scheme for people in mortgage arrears. You do not have to engage a solicitor to get help, and taking advice early generally improves the options available. This firm advises debtors in matters separate from those in which it acts for a creditor, and never both sides of the same debt — conflicts are checked before any substantive discussion.

Tax. Nothing on this website is tax advice. Questions about VAT on recovered sums, bad debt relief or the treatment of write-offs belong with your accountant or tax adviser and with Revenue’s own guidance.