Heavy Metal Payment: Colorado business settles legal dispute with 3 tons of coins

A quirky legal dispute in Northern Colorado made headlines as a welding business, Fired Up Fabrication LLC, attempted to settle a $23,500 debt to a subcontractor, JMF Enterprises, with a truckload of coins. 

JMF’s lawyer seemingly hatched the brilliant idea of delivering the settlement in coins, a whopping 6,500-pound mound of loose change, that required a forklift to move, according to Yahoo News!. The plaintiffs’ attorney, Danielle Beem, described it as a “symbolic middle finger.” The unusual delivery was intended to be a colossal inconvenience for the recipients.

The dispute arose after Fired Up Fabrication claimed it wasn’t paid in full for welding work on an apartment building, leading to a civil lawsuit. While the settlement agreement didn’t specify the form of payment, the coin delivery took things to a new level.

Beem, citing the impracticality of handling such a colossal coin collection, called the stunt “petty” and a “waste of time.” JMF’s attorney argued that the coins constituted a valid form of payment, but the judge seemed to side with the plaintiffs, perceiving it as malicious.

In the end, this peculiar payment attempt might end up costing JMF more than they anticipated, as the judge is expected to rule in favor of a more conventional payment method and may even tack on additional attorney’s fees. In the realm of legal disputes, sometimes a little humor and creativity can make for quite the coin-troversy!