A Northern Colorado welding business that owes a subcontractor $23,500 for an outstanding bill that ended up being battled out in court showed up to pay - with 3 tons of quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies.

Danielle Beem, who is the attorney representing the plaintiff, Fired Up Fabrication, says the 6,500-pound coin delivery "a symbolic middle finger."

"I think the thought was my clients would have to accept it and it's a giant waste of time and a major F-U," Beem said.

According to court documents in the case, JMF Enterprises hired Fired Up Fabrication to do some subcontracting welding work on an apartment building. Fired Up Fabrication later filed a civil lawsuit, saying JMF did not pay in full.

In July, the two sides had their mediation, where JMF Enterprises decided that yes, they would pay Fired Up Fabrication a total of $23,500 to settle the financial dispute.

The payment of the settlement wasn't discussed other than that JMF would pay the money.

Six weeks ago, Beem said she received a call from the driver of a flatbed truck who said he was parked near her office to deliver the settlement. It turned out the driver was delivering a 2'x'3'x4' box filled with coins. The total weight was more than 6,500 pounds.

The driver told Beem "it was full of a mix of loose coins." Beem said JMF's lawyer told her that the box contained the entirety of the $23,500 settlement, and would "require a forklift to move."

Beem said she couldn't accept the coins because the freight elevator in her downtown Denver office couldn't work under the weight of more than 3,000 pounds.

"Even if I wanted to take this box of coins, I had no way of doing so," Beem told CBS News Colorado.

She went on to say the stunt was petty, and a waste of time. She went ahead and called Giovanni Comacho, who represents JMF, but got no answer.

"It's funny," said Beem. "As long as it's not happening to you."

In court pleadings, JMF's attorney wrote "the coins, being current coin of the realm, constituted a tender of the settlement funds, and therefore, JMF has complied with the terms of the agreement. The settlement agreement did not outline any specific form for the payment."

"JMF has no intention to harass Plaintiff, waste time, or frustrate the settlement," Comacho wrote.

A Larimer County judge is considering the request but Beem says the stunt will likely backfire on JMF. The judge told her they "thought it was malicious." She said she anticipates the judge will order JMF to use a standard form of payment like a check, and then also pay an additional $7,000 in attorney fees.

JMF asked a judge to force the plaintiffs to accept the coins.

"It's petty and a grand waste of time," said Beem.

Read more at CBS News