Don’t admit liability for the debt; force the creditor to prove the debt and your responsibility for it. File the Answer with the Clerk of Court. Ask for a stamped copy of the Answer from the Clerk of Court.
Full Answer
Many states have forms and instructions available for answering a credit card lawsuit, either online, at the court clerk's office, or at legal aid clinics. In some states, you may have received an answer form with your summons and complaint, or you may have to go to the clerk's office in the court where the lawsuit was filed to get the form.
Most consumer defense attorneys will at least provide you with a free consultation, and may be able to work with you on fees. The attorney understands that you probably don't have a lot of money to spend on a legal defense if you're being sued for a credit card debt.
Three ways to answer a civil court summons for credit card debt When you’ve been served with a lawsuit for your debt, there are three things you can do: Ignore it Try to settle the debt Go to court While it is an option, DO NOT IGNORE THE LAWSUIT!
Debt.com recommends that you should always consult a licensed attorney if you have legal questions or face legal action. Being in serious credit card debt can be scary. While it can be easy to throw away bills and ignore calls from debt collectors, there are consequences for not paying what you owe.
You should respond in one of three ways:Admit. Admit the paragraph if you agree with everything in the paragraph.Deny. Deny the paragraph if you want to make the debt collector prove that it is true.Defendant denies the allegation for lack of knowledge sufficient to know the truth or falsity thereof.
Negotiate With the Judgment Creditor It's never too late to negotiate. The process of trying to grab property to pay a judgment can be quite time-consuming and burdensome for a judgment creditor.
You can resolve your debt after the suit is filed by sending a Debt Lawsuit Settlement Letter. After filing your Answer into the case, you should begin the process of negotiating a settlement. Most creditors/collectors want to reach a settlement, and they will often settle for less than the amount you actually owe.
The best way to settle a debt lawsuit is first to file a response, then contact the otherside and make an offer. You can use SoloSuit to respond in just 15 minutes. This gives you the leverage you need to settle.
How To Not Pay A JudgementAttempt to vacate a judgement.File a claim of exemption.File for bankruptcy to discharge the debt.Settle with the judgement creditor.
Typically, a creditor will agree to accept 40% to 50% of the debt you owe, although it could be as much as 80%, depending on whether you're dealing with a debt collector or the original creditor. In either case, your first lump-sum offer should be well below the 40% to 50% range to provide some room for negotiation. 5.
Take your written answer to the clerk's office. The clerk will take your documents and stamp each set of papers "filed" with the date. They will then give the copies back to you. One copy is for you to keep. The other copy you're responsible for delivering to the plaintiff (or their attorney).
You can sue someone even if they have no money. The lawsuit does not rely on whether you can pay but on whether you owe a certain debt amount to that plaintiff. Even with no money, the court can decide that the creditor has won the lawsuit, and the opposite party still owes that sum of money.
Offer a specific dollar amount that is roughly 30% of your outstanding account balance. The lender will probably counter with a higher percentage or dollar amount. If anything above 50% is suggested, consider trying to settle with a different creditor or simply put the money in savings to help pay future monthly bills.
A judgment gives the creditor the right to use additional collection methods to collect the debt owed to them. For example, if the credit card company proves to the court that you owe $5,000, a court may enter a judgment saying that you owe $5,000 (plus costs and interest).
What Happens When A Judgment Is Entered Against You. When you go past due on a debt, the creditor calls and sends letters in an attempt to convince you to pay. Eventually, it goes to a collection agency. When all else fails, the matter is turned over to a lawyer.
It has also used quasi-legal, legal action under Sec 138 of Negotiable Instruments Act. Both the sections quoted above provide for a jail term up to two years and a fine for up to twice the amount dishonoured.
The suing party (plaintiff) should be the credit card company or place where you have a bank account (or a company that has purchased outstanding debt that originally belonged to one of these entities). The party being sued (defendant) should be you or a co-signer of the account. If you have no idea who the plaintiff is (unless the plaintiff is a debt buyer of your original debt, as explained above), the situation could be a case of:
If you can't afford a lawyer, you may be able to get free legal help from a local legal aid society , the American Bar Association ( ABA) or the National Association of Consumer Advocates ( NACA ). You’d only be responsible for minimal court costs like filing fees.
If you're in an overall bad financial position, you could consider bankruptcy for more general debt relief.
In an asset case, usually only credit card debts listed on the petition will have been discharged.
Identity theft or credit card fraud: You didn’t make or consent to the purchases.
Along with the summons and complaint should come instructions concerning what you need to do next. Usually, you’ll have about 20–30 days to submit an answer. If there’s an answer sheet provided or in your written pleading, you’ll want to:
Even if you think that you legitimately owe the creditor money, you should still make credit card companies prove that you owe the exact dollar amount they’re claiming. This is called their “burden of proof” and it’s a tough requirement to meet. Most times, their claims are baseless or they’re unprepared to prove their court case.
All lawsuits begin with the defendant being served with a summons and complaint (known as a ‘citation’ and ‘petition’ in Texas).
Even if 100% of the claims alleged against you are true, you should still answer the complaint. Of course, that does not mean you should lie. Plaintiffs and defendants can both get in trouble for making false representations to the court.
Fortunately, defendants in credit card debt lawsuits have a few good defenses, even when there is no dispute that they owe the debt in question:
The three primary ways to collect on a judgment are: garnishing wages, garnishing bank accounts, and seizing property.
The first thing you should do after being served with a summons and complaint is figure out how much money you can get together to offer as a lump sum payment. Most debt collection companies will accept half of what is actually owed, provided you can make a lump sum payment in the near future.
If you settle the debt out of court, the creditors and their lawyers can withdraw the case. You can avoid the hassle of filing an answer formally with the court. Step 2: How to answer a civil summons for credit card debt by filing an answer with the court.
When you’ve been served with a lawsuit for your debt, there are three things you can do: Ignore it. Try to settle the debt.
The debt is basically considered a loss by the original lender or creditor. When you are served summons for a debt, someone will usually come to your house or work, ask you for your name, and present you with a civil summons. At this point it is best to not freak out and understand that it’s time to face your debt.
Civil summons can happen when you default on an unsecured loan or fail to pay a credit card and it gets moved to charge off status. The debt is basically considered a loss by the original lender or creditor.
If the debt still belongs to the original creditor, expect to pay more in the settlement. If the debt has been sold to a collector, they may take a lesser amount, since they purchased the debt at a discount. Looking at your budget, can help you determine your stance during the negotiation. Have an amount you are willing to pay ready when you call and work from there with the creditor.
Not admitting something that is known to be true can lead to larger legal issues once the case has begun.
You should use this option if you believe that the claims against you are for a debt that is not yours. For example, if you were an authorized user and didn’t spend the amount listed, but are being charged with it.
Defendant denies the allegations contained in paragraph 1 of the complaint as Defendant is without information or knowledge sufficient to form an opinion as to the truth and accuracy of alleged assignments and entitlements.
If the judge has failed to rule on your motion within a certain amount of time you can consider that motion denied read the Indiana Rules you’ll see how much time rulings on motion take. You will receive a copy in the mail of his ruling or they will set it for a hearing.
Therefore, you always need to check your local court rules. They may require you to still file an answer, or they may not even allow motions in lieu of answers. Remember to check and then double check!
The defendant is indebted to plaintiff. Each number on the complaint is considered a count against you. I answered the complaint by looking at each count and stating my defense. You are basically picking at the complaint and you need to defend yourself.
Defendant denies the allegations contained in paragraph 2 as there is not, nor has there ever been any agreement, written, oral or implied with the Plaintiff and Defendant .
When a creditor sues you and wins, the court issues a money judgment against you. Once the creditor has a money judgment, it can use various methods to collect on that judgment. It can garnish your wages, place a levy on your bank account, or place a lien against any real estate that you own.
Also, federal law limits the amount that a judgment creditor can take from your paycheck. The amount that can be garnished is limited to 25% of your disposable earnings (what's left after mandatory deductions) or the amount by which your wages exceed 30 times the federal minimum wage, whichever is less.
But even if a creditor obtains a money judgment against you, it might not be able to collect on that judgment if you're "judgment proof." If your income is protected from garnishment and you don't have many (or any) assets like a house, personal property, or savings to pay off your debts, you're probably judgment proof. In most cases, all of the following must apply for you to be judgment proof: 1 your debt is all unsecured 2 your income can't be garnished 3 all of your property is protected by exemptions, and 4 your situation is unlikely to change.
If you don't pay your bills for a consumer debt, like for your credit card or cellphone, or fail to make payments for a personal loan or medical bills, the creditor can sue you for the debt they claim you owe. Once the creditor gets a money judgment against you, it can garnish certain kinds of income. But even if a creditor obtains ...
your situation is unlikely to change. The term "judgment proof" is a bit of a misnomer because the creditor can sue you and get a judgment —it just can't collect on the judgment. Example. Say you're permanently disabled and unable to work.
Often, a judgment creditor won't attempt to levy your personal property because of the time and expense incurred in locating the property and the added expense of advertising and selling the property.
don't own any assets such as money in a bank account or real estate, and. any other income source, like unemployment benefits, Social Security, and other public entitlement benefits, as well as personal property, is exempt from seizure by judgment creditors.
A debt collection lawsuit begins when the collection agency files a “complaint” (sometimes called a “petition”) in court. The complaint will explain why the collector is suing you and what it wants—usually, repayment of money you owe, plus interest, fees, and costs.
Once the collector gets a money judgment against you, you might face wage garnishment, a bank account levy, or a lien on your property.
“ Discovery ” refers to the formal procedures that parties in a lawsuit use to get information and documents from each other to prepare for trial or settle the case. If you don’t raise any defenses or counterclaims, the collector probably won’t engage in discovery. But if you have a good defense or file a counterclaim, you and the collector might want to participate in discovery.
Generally, you’ll get around 20 to 30 days to file a written answer to the lawsuit with the court. You’ll have to respond to the allegations in the complaint and raise any defenses you have, like that the statute of limitations (the law that sets a time limit on the right to file a lawsuit) has expired, or counterclaims against the collector, such as violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
If you don’t respond to the suit, the collector will most likely ask the court to enter a default judgment, which means you automatically lose the case. The court might then simply award the collector the amount it requested, or it might scrutinize the documentation to make sure the amount is legitimate, or the court might require the collector to present evidence before awarding any money. The collector will probably be able to get attorneys’ fees, court costs, and interest in addition to the amount you owe. Once the collector gets a money judgment against you, you might face wage garnishment, a bank account levy, or a lien on your property.
To challenge a summary judgment motion, you’ll have to file paperwork opposing the motion. If you don’t, you’ll probably lose. Because the outcome of the lawsuit is at stake, you should seriously consider consulting with a lawyer, if you haven't already, if the collector files this kind of motion.
If the judge grants the motion, the court will enter a judgment against you without a trial.
One way to respond to a debt lawsuit is to challenge the plaintiff’s right to file the lawsuit. By the time a debt reaches this point, it has often been sold—sometimes more than once. The entity that owns the debt and is pursuing a lawsuit against you is legally required to show proof that they have a right to do so.
The rules vary by state and even situation, but typically the laws provide a range between four and six years in most cases.
Don’t admit liability for the debt; force the creditor to prove the debt and your responsibility for it.
Requiring proof of the amount you owe can be one way to defend against a debt collection lawsuit.
Just a note: Even when your right to validation has been triggered and you send a request with 30 days of receiving the initial communication, debt collectors are not required to validate within 30 days.
According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, more than 70 million Americans have dealt with debt collectors, and around 25% felt threatened during their dealings with such agencies. The type of language some collection agencies use can spark fear.
2. Challenge the Company’s Legal Right to Sue.