I am not certain that the information you were given was correct since the courts of one state are constitutionally required to recognize the judgments of the other 49 states under the "Full Faith and Credit" clause of the Constitution. There has to be a procedure in place to accomplish this. All states have them to comply with their constitutional obligation. I have enforced foreign judgments in Connecticut without any problem using the procedures described in my above post.

Is it possible that you may have misunderstood something that you were told? Have you reviewed Alabama's venue statutes? There may be an answer for you there.

You also have a constitutional right to represent yourself (Pro Se) without benefit of an attorney. This refers to you personally not your LLC or corporation  in Superior Court.The court may put pressure on you to secure an attorney in a complicated case because it thinks it may be in your best interest, but the ultimate decision is yours. Several years ago  I saw an arraignment in a criminal case in which the court advised the Defendant to get an attorney. The Defendant refused, insisted on representing himself, and pleaded guilty in the expectation of getting a light sentence. The judge sentenced him to 9 years. The Defendant was shocked. The judge then asked him if he thought he needed an attorney. The Defendant agreed that he did. The judge vacated the sentence, judgment and guilty plea, and again advised him to get an attorney. However, it demonstrated that the choice was his.

The main issue for enforcing the judgment is the jurisdiction of the forum court because the Defendant's right to due process has to be protected. There are a number of ways the Defendant can challenge the judgment successfully.  He can appear in the forum court for the limited purpose of filing a motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction before the judgment enters. I have also seen a case here in which the Defendant filed an entirely new post trial case to set aside the judgment of the forum court for lack of jurisdiction. If he was defaulted for failure to appear, he can also wait until the Plaintiff tries to enforce the judgment in his native state, and challenge the forum court's jurisdiction at that time.

It would seem odd that you could not file a civil suit for contract breach, tortious conversion or fraud in Alabama since these are causes of action at common law that are actionable in all states. In fact, in Connecticut the Plaintiff is required to file a small claims case in the foreign Defendant's state unless the Defendant owns property in Connecticut. Small claims courts usually have limitations that are not always operative in the Superior Court. This is because these courts are designed for people to represent themselves in uncomplicated matters...usually collection cases.

Suits filed here in the Superior Court are another matter. If the Plaintiff is successful in defeating a Defendant's motion to dismiss... jurisdiction is established, and the case goes forward. Otherwise he has to refile in the Defendant's state.

On occasion I have found it necessary to sue a delinquent client after amicable attempts have been made to collect. I never sue a foreign Defendant in small claims because of the limitations involved. If the dollar amount is small... I file in the Superior Court of Connecticut, and take my chances with the long arm statute. If the Defendant wants to contest jurisdiction, I will demand argument of the motion before the court.
If the Defendant is an LLC or corporation it is going to be necessary for it to go to the expense of hiring an attorney to draft and argue the motion. This is because under Connecticut law a corporate officer/director or a member of an LLC may not represent it in the Superior Court because it is an unauthorized practice of law. It is usually less expensive for the Defendant to pay my bill than to go to this expense.

If the amount of my bill is large, I sue the Defendant in his native state, and exercise my right to represent myself (Pro Se) before the court of the other state.

 

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