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Litigation
Series
Know
your customers
By
Goh Hoon Huar
Good
litigation management does not start only when you have commenced your
legal suit. While everybody who deals with you in business may
appear friendly and possibly is the last person you will ever sue. An
appetite for details always prove useful to a litigant.
If
you are a merchant or operate a trading company we have the following
tips for you.
Get
as much information as you can from your customers when your customers
are eager to purchase from you. It is easier to do so now than when you
need to sue them to recover your debt.
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What
is the full name of your customer?
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Is
your customer a limited company (i.e a Sendirian Berhad), a sole
proprietorship or a partnership?
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If
it is a limited company, does it have a parent company?
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Are
there other subsidiary companies used separately for trading or
purchasing?
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If
the customer is a partnership, do you have the individual
particulars of all the partners?
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Make
sure you have obtained the name of your customer as stated in
his/her/their identity card. Check the spelling of your customer’s
name. You may call your customer “Encik Mohamad bin Abu Bakar”
but in fact his name is spelt as “Mohd bin Abu Bakar”.
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Check
if your customer is also referred by another name or surname. This
is especially true if your customer’s name has been translated
from Chinese characters under the influence of various Chinese
dialects pronunciation. “Mr. Khoo” may also be known as “Mr
Kuar”. Incorrect
spelling means legal proceedings will have to be amended, reissue
and hence leading to delay.
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Is
the customer likely to be a nominee and business decisions are made
by another person? If so do you have information of that person?
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Is
your customer’s residential address genuine? Can you find your
customer’s house on the map?
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Have
you check your customer’s record against some of the database
supplier? You will never know a search will reveal the existence of
legal suits against your customers by other supplier.
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