What are usury laws?
The term usury is used whenever transactions involving interest are created. Depending on where you live, there are usury laws that may limit how much interest one party can charge another, how those rates are expressed, and how increasing or decreasing those rates can be accomplished. Because these laws are usually very specific, and because violation of usury laws can be a criminal offense, anyone entering into a promissory note needs to be certain of the usury laws in your area. Promissory notes that violate these laws may not only be unenforceable or negate any interest charged, but parties that violate the law may find themselves in violation of a criminal statute.
