Hamilton County Criminal Court Clerk Vince Dean announced that his office has recently turned over collections of delinquent accounts to the law firm of Perdue, Brandon, Fielder, Collins & Mott LLP. The RFP (request for proposal) process took place last summer and this firm was selected from a group of about a half dozen companies that submitted proposals.
All accounts that were previously assigned to other collection agencies have been sent to the new firm. Currently, only Criminal Court Cases are being pursued and Sessions cases will follow in the near future.
“Our office takes the state mandated issue of collecting court-ordered fines seriously.” said Mr. Dean, who is in his ninth year as criminal court clerk. “However, we do realize that in today’s economic environment, it can be difficult to fulfill your obligations”, he added. “Our staff is very sympathetic to the difficult times that many of our customers face and, for that reason, we are more than willing to work with each and every person who is willing to put forth a valid effort.”
He said state law does not allow the clerk or their staff to forgive any court ordered fees, fines or costs. However, it does allow for reasonable payment plans to be considered. Millions of dollars are owed to the Hamilton County Court currently and despite the best efforts of the Clerk’s office, most of that amount goes uncollected.
Mr. Dean said Tennessee State Law allows for any amount not collected after six months of adjudication to be turned over to a collection agency. The Hamilton County Criminal Court Clerk’s office waits for a full one year before turning over a case. Any amount in arrears is automatically sent to the collection agency at the end of that year.
The Criminal Court Clerk’s was not nearly as vigilant in collection efforts during the COVID crisis. “It is time to resume our efforts in collecting what is owed to the county.” said Mr. Dean.
Officials said, "If you feel that you have received a letter from Perdue, Brandon, Fielder, Collins & Mott in error, email Mr. Dean, directly at vinced@hamiltontn.gov. He will personally see that your concerns are addressed."