Many companies treat escalation as a ladder to be climbed to the top: a demand, then a formal notice, then a lawyer, then court. The result is that a matter keeps moving up the rungs even when every signal says the time to move came much earlier — or that moving will not help at all.
Escalation is a decision taken on evidence, not a sequence to be completed. A good decision answers three questions: what changed in the debtor's behaviour, what does your file prove today, and which deadline, once missed, cannot be recovered?
What follows maps those decisions: the rungs, the signals that move you between them, and the stated deadlines that govern the last two.
The rungs
- 01
The documented demand
Professional contact that presents the claim clearly and records the reply. The purpose here is not pressure but record: what the debtor acknowledged, what they disputed, and when.
- 02
A settlement or a payment plan
A single payment on terms, or a plan with instalments and dates you can monitor. A good plan is measurable: an amount, a date, and a defined consequence for default.
- 03
A formal demand with a deadline
A demand to pay within a stated period — which is also a procedural condition if you intend to seek a payment order later, where the period may not be less than eight days.
- 04
The court route
Here the form is chosen: a payment order where the right is evidenced in writing, due and of a determined amount, or an ordinary claim where the dispute is substantive or the claim needs assessment.
- 05
Execution
Judgment is not the end of recovery. Execution runs under a dedicated execution judge, and it is the stage that decides whether the judgment has any financial effect at all.
Signals to move
These are observations from our own casework, not rules of law. They are the signals we find most telling before a delay turns into a loss.
Acknowledgement stops
While the debtor still acknowledges the debt, there is something to build on. When acknowledgement stops and the claim itself starts being questioned after months of silence, the matter has changed character.
Promises stop being kept
One broken promise may be circumstance. Three in a row is a pattern. A pattern is not treated with more promises.
Movement in assets or in the entity
A change of partners, activity moved to a new entity, visible assets sold. That is a signal that time is working against you.
A date coming into view
A contractual deadline, a procedural period, any date whose passing has consequences. When a date appears on the horizon, the decision comes before the comfort.
Deadlines you cannot miss
These are stated in the Civil and Commercial Procedures Law, unlike the signals above.
Thirty days to appeal
The appeal period is thirty days unless the law provides otherwise. A judgment not appealed in time becomes final against you as well.
Fifteen days in urgent matters
The period shortens to fifteen days in urgent matters. Know which category your matter falls in before you start counting days.
Forty days before the Supreme Court
The period for appeal before the Supreme Court is forty days. It is a review of how the law was applied, not a second chance to argue the facts.
The execution judge is the forum
Execution runs under an execution judge who holds exclusive jurisdiction to decide substantive and interim execution disputes. Taking a dispute to the wrong forum costs time you cannot get back.
Frequently asked questions
Does escalating end the commercial relationship?
Not necessarily. Many matters close in settlement after proceedings begin, and the relationship continues on new terms. What usually ends a relationship is the manner of the contact, not the procedure itself.
What does escalation cost?
It varies with the value of the claim and the form of procedure. The right calculation is not cost alone but cost against the likelihood of recovery; a small claim against a debtor with no assets may not be worth the court route.
Can we return to the amicable track afterwards?
Yes, and it happens often. Starting a procedure changes the negotiating balance, and many settlements are struck after it rather than before.
What does RAM need to assess timing?
The debt instrument and due date, an account statement showing earlier payments, the correspondence record including acknowledgements and disputes, and any general information about the debtor's position. From those we form a view on timing, and we give it as it is.