Ormond Beach, FL asked in Civil Litigation for Florida

Q: Can legal action be taken to collect a debt over five years old in the state of Florida?

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1 Lawyer Answer
Charles M.  Baron
Charles M. Baron
Answered
  • Hollywood, FL
  • Licensed in Florida

A: Depends on whether statement(s) of account was/were sent to the debtor within the last four years. The creditor has 5 years to sue for breach of written contract and 4 years to sue for breach of oral contract; however, there is also a 4-year deadline to sue for "account stated", which is based on an express or implied agreement between the parties that a specified balance is correct and due and an express or implied promise to pay the balance - REGARDLESS of how old the original agreement to pay is. If a statement of account is sent, and the debtor fails to object to the statement, the debtor is impliedly consenting to the validity of the debt. So let's say the creditor and debtor reached an oral agreement on 6/1/15, but the creditor sent the last written reminder of the debt on 6/1/18, without objection from the debtor. The creditor would have until 6/1/22 to sue, even though that would be 7 years after the original agreement.

Bruce Alexander Minnick agrees with this answer

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