What Is a Confession of Judgment?
A confession of judgment is a clause within a loan agreement that allows a lender, if the borrower has defaulted, to obtain a judgment against the borrower without following regular court procedures. The lender can use the signed confession to garnish the borrower’s bank account or seize assets. Confessions of judgment are most common in merchant cash advances and online loans.
When you obtain a small business loan, you will need to sign a loan agreement with the lender. Like most contracts, loan agreements can be long and difficult to understand for a layperson. One of the clauses in your loan agreement—one that could significantly impact your business’s future—could be a confession of judgment.
A confession of judgment gives your lender the power to obtain a judgment against you in the event that you default on the loan, without notifying you or following usual court procedures. You can end up losing your business if the lender decides to enforce a confession of judgment.
Although confessions of judgment have been around for decades, most small business owners don’t know how powerful they can be. Confessions of judgment can seriously limit your rights, so it’s important to understand exactly how they work and what you can do if one is used against you.
How Confessions of Judgment Work
You can think of a confession of judgment as a legal shortcut. A confession of judgment, also called a judgment by confession or cognovit note, allows a lender to obtain a judgment against you while bypassing regular legal procedures. This is a powerful tool—with a signed confession of judgment in hand, the lender can wipe your bank account or seize your business assets without giving you the opportunity to defend yourself.
The purpose behind confessions of judgment is to facilitate a quick resolution when borrowers default on a loan. Lenders used this legal tool frequently during the 2008 economic crisis. Unfortunately, confessions of judgment can also leave borrowers scrambling.
The process starts when the lender finds that you’re in default of your business loan agreement. Maybe you missed several payments or violated some other term of your contract, such as using loan funds for an unauthorized purpose. The lender will typically notify you in writing that you’re in default of the loan. Some loan agreements will give you a specific amount of time to cure the default. If you don’t remedy the situation in the specified time frame, the lender’s attorney can go to court to enforce the confession of judgment.
A Confession of Judgment Seriously Limits a Borrower’s Rights
The specific way in which a confession of judgment works varies by state. However, signing a confession of judgment can mean:
- The lender doesn’t have to inform you when they go to court to enforce the confession of judgment.
- The lender doesn’t have to serve you with a complaint or other legal process (so you might not even know what’s going on until you start seeing debits from your bank account).
- You accept your liability for the balance of the loan and any outstanding interest and fees.
- You forfeit your right to dispute the lender’s claim against you. If the court approves the confession of judgment, the lender can garnish your bank account, sell off collateral, or seize other assets that are subject to a lien.
As you can see, confessions of judgment seriously limit a borrower’s rights in the event of a default. The good news is that many states either prohibit or restrict confessions of judgment. And not all business loans contain confession of judgment clauses. Next, we’ll look at state laws and which types of business loans are most likely to include confessions of judgment.
Does Your Loan Agreement Have a Confession of Judgment?
Confessions of judgment are only permissible in some states, so depending on where your business is located, you might never have to deal with this burdensome legal tool. Plus, confessions of judgment are more popular with certain kinds of loans than others.
State Laws on Confessions of Judgment
According to Farid Yaghoubtil, a lawyer and founder of Downtown LA Law Group, “Some states disallow confessions of judgment language altogether, which prevents lenders from being able to quickly target a small business and sap their funds. Other states do not have any regulation on the language.”
More specifically, states can be divided into three categories in terms of confessions of judgment—states where they are allowed, states with limits on their use, and states where they are prohibited.
States That Permit Confessions of Judgment
- Colorado
- Delaware
- Illinois
- Maine (confessions of judgment allowed only for commercial loans)
- New Hampshire
- Ohio
- Rhode Island (only allowed for certain small volume lenders)
- Utah
- Wisconsin
States That Permit, But Significantly Limit, Confessions of Judgment
- Alaska
- California
- Connecticut
- Idaho
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Jersey
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania (confessions of judgment allowed only for commercial loans)
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wyoming
States That Prohibit Confessions of Judgment
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Montana
- New Mexico
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Vermont
- West Virginia
Types of Loans With Confessions of Judgment
Confessions of judgment are more common with financing that’s geared toward or available to borrowers with lower credit scores. “Private lenders,” says Downtown LA Law Group’s Yaghoubtil, “are more likely to include confession of judgment clauses in their contracts than bank lenders. Small businesses are more likely to need a loan than large businesses, as large businesses can likely go to other sources.”
The following types of financing often include confessions of judgment in states where they are legal:
In each of these cases, you get fast, relatively easy access to capital, making them good options for startups and borrowers with lower credit scores. But, lenders limit their own risks by charging high interest rates and sometimes including confessions of judgment.
Conventional bank loans and SBA loans typically do not contain confessions of judgment because these loans cater to more creditworthy borrowers and are secured with valuable collateral.
A confession of judgment clause might be labeled as such in your loan agreement. But other times, the contract might simply say that the lender can debit your account, sell your assets, or declare the loan due without notice. A confession of judgment might also be included as part of a personal guarantee.
Here’s an example of a confession of judgment from legal search engine LawInsider:
Photo credit: LawInsider.com
Sometimes, your original loan agreement might not contain a confession of judgment. But, let’s say you become delinquent on the loan and negotiate a payment plan with the lender. As a condition of the payment plan, the lender might ask you to sign a confession of judgment.
The best course of action is to always pay your business loan on time. If you’re struggling with payments, contact your lender right away. And if you’re in doubt about whether your loan has a confession of judgment clause, you can always hire a business attorney to review your loan agreement.
Should You Take a Loan That has a Confession of Judgment?
When you’re shopping around for a business loan, it can be tempting to go with your very first offer, feeling like you can handle any issues later. But you should carefully evaluate the risks of signing a loan agreement that includes a confession of judgment.
By signing a confession of judgment, you’re signing away your right to defend against a lender’s claim that you’ve defaulted on a loan. If a lender enforces a confession of judgment against you, you can file a petition or motion to have it invalidated.
Craig R. Tractenberg, attorney and partner at Fox Rothschild LLP, says that “confession of judgment provisions are frequently challenged in court upon enforcement, and courts are liberal in granting relief, striking, or modifying judgment because of the oppressive nature of the clause. You can ask a court to issue an injunction against the lender in certain circumstances against using the clause.”
The problem is that you might not even know that a lender is using a confession of judgment against you until they’ve debited your bank account or seized your assets. Plus, it’s not enough to claim that you didn’t know what you were signing. You’ll need to show a specific reason—such as duress or fraud—for the court to invalidate the confession of judgment.
If you are seeking a business loan with bad credit, then agreeing to a confession of judgment might be the price you have to pay to obtain some kind of financing. If you’re determined not to sign a confession of judgment, you can improve your credit and apply for a bank loan or SBA loan. You can also try to negotiate with the lender. For example, you might be able to offer more collateral or agree to a slightly interest rate in exchange for the lender removing the confession of judgment.
Confession of Judgment: Read the Fine Print on Your Loan Agreement
Business loans come in many shapes and sizes, and getting the right one for your business is important to your company’s future success. You’ll be comparing business loans along many different factors, including cost, loan amount, and speed.
While loan shopping, don’t forget to read the fine print of any potential business loan agreement. The agreement might contain a confession of judgment or other legal language that could impact you financially later. Make sure you understand what each clause means, consulting a lawyer if necessary. The more you know now, the better you can protect yourself and your business in the future.
The post Confession of Judgment on a Business Loan: Everything You Need to Know appeared first on Fundera Ledger.
from Fundera Ledger https://www.fundera.com/blog/confession-of-judgment/
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