ILLINOIS
I have an ex boyfriend who I loaned over $1600 dollars. On Oct 20th I was told by him in a text message which I saved that he would pay me back and he has yet to do so and says he won't. I want to nail his butt! Any contingency lawyers out there. He took all of my savings. I am a single parent.
This is not a scam, it's an unpaid loan.
Your recourse is to sue the bad ex in Small Claims to obtain a judgment for the amount of the loan. However, to get that judgment, you will have to prove that the amount claimed is actually a loan with an obligation to repay and not a gift. If you have nothing in writing (text messages won't always count because they can be easily faked/spoofed), then it could be quite difficult to prove that it was a loan and not a gift. That goes especially for loans to ex-boyfriends/lovers/spouses/significant others.
The others are correct in that there would be no contingency attorneys who would likely take your case. The dollar amount you are seeking wouldn't be enough for most to make it worth their time. You'll just have to take this one on yourself.
Of course, even if you do get a judgment, that doesn't get you the money back. You will still have to collect the judgment yourself.
