Credit Card Debt Law Suit

i have discovered that the debt gets sold for .07 cents on the dollar and in my state a 2nd or 3rd party can not threaten law suit and they will accept a much lower payoff just so they make a profit.

It is not uncommon for debt collectors to pose as attorneys to scare you into paying, so any threatened legal action may be a bluff....You will really know if you are being sued if you are served papers to appear in court...If this has already happened, do not under any circumstances fail to show up on the appointed day....."No show" = default judgment...

2008-03-31 16:49:34 by i8ntsane

www.freedomfromcreditors.comPl anB Credit and Debt Consultants talk about Protecting your assets while dealing with a Credit Card Lawsuit, Debt ...

I was given 10 days to respond to the petition. They are asking for 1500.00, I believe this is an old credit card that went to collection that the available limit was about 500. I need to write a responce but I do not know what to write or if I should get an attorney, an attorney will probably cost me more than the judgement. I am in Texas.
I have recieved a copy of the petition filed by Palisades, assignee of HSBC. They have filed a request for judgement with the county clerk office. I need to provide a written answer to them. I do not have the 1500 to pay them off and I am not sure if it is worth hiring an attorney. I really just need to know what I should write because if I do not respond they will be awarded the judgment.
If you go into a payment agreement with Palisades can they still file the judgement and place it on your credit report?
Yes I guess this is a citation. It says that if I or attorney do not file a written answer with the clerk who issued this citation by 10 am on the Monday next following the expiration of ten days after you were served this citation, a default judgment may be taken against you. It was left on my door on on the 27th. What should I write in my response, I think an attorney will cost me more. I did contact them and they said they would only do a payment agreement after I paid them $200.00. I assume by check so that they could get my bank account number. I am not sure about the account, according to the paperwork it was defaulted on less than 4 years ago. It is not that I do not think I should pay but this is 3 times what I may have owed.
I forgot to add that when I called on Friday and was told that I could pay 200 down and a payment agreement would be mailed to me, I told the lady that I would have to think about it because I did not want to give them 200 and then have no agreement and then be sued anyway as I would have nothing in writing. She told me that if I did not call back by the end of the business day, it would show that I had no intentions of paying the debt.
Tha nks to everyone for thier feedback. The first page is the plaintiffs original petition. 1. Plaintiff requests discovery be conducted at level 1 (TRCP 190.2) Then it goes on to say that they extended credit and the defendent used or derived benefit from the credit accout. Exhibit A represents the summary of transations of which a sytematic record was kept. Then if you look at what Exhibit A is, it is a computer screen print off with my name, address, account number, date defaulted, and a dollar amount-1521. It does not show any detailed record of anything.
2. It says that defendatn'st fauilure to honor payment obligations created a balance due and owing to plaintiff as shown in Exhibit A. Despite demands, payment has not been forthcoming. All conditions precedent have been performed. 3. the breach of defendant led plaintiff to employ undersigned law firm to file suitnecessitation a reasonable fee for attorney services.

Prayer: it is asking for judgement 1521 +
Again Thanks for all the advice.

I want to file a written response but I have yet to hear what I should write. Can anyone give me some clear directives or advise. I guess I need something more specific, please?

I want to start by telling Echo....GEEZ! Leave something for me to answer! You got it all covered!

Whatever you do...DO NOT send them any money or even admit to owing this. Their demand to get $200 up front is class collection agent nonsense designed to reset the SOL! . Send the attorney a letter offering your proposed settlement, and tell them if they agree to send you a settlement letter. Once you both have agreed to a payment plan, they can simply drop the lawsuit.

And for the first time in my very long history here...you have receive a lot of terrific advice. I greatly enjoyed reading Civpro's response to this, and hope that he becomes a regular contributor here with his advice.

But I must take issue with one comment he made about how lawyers do not "knowingly" file lawsuits if they the SOL has expired. For starters, they will file any lawsuit that their client instructs them to do....and very rarely will they tell the lawyer the SOL has expired. And the lawyer is not going to investigate this first, they will simply take the case and file it.

There are law firms/collection agencies that specialize in purchasing old, noncollectable debts, and file lawsuits on them. Why would the do this? Because the majority of the public do not understand the SOL laws, and don't know that they must offer an affirmative defense in order to take advantage of this. So these lawyers will gamble and file the lawsuit hoping to a default judgment.

Yes it happens....I know of a local agency that just purchased a huge portfolio of old debts from hospitals in this area. Nearly all of these are beyond 6 years old. Why would they spend money buying old, noncollectable debts? Just read the above paragraph.

There are lawyers, and there are "collection attorneys". I am very happy you are a lawyer, and thank you for your excellent response to this question.

2007-11-02 20:32:11 by stayc8002

after I graudated, I could not find a job for months and could not pay the credit card debt, which was 9800(includig late payment and interest). It was handed over the collector, they offered me to settle at half but I couldn't afford. Now it was with the second collector, and I offered them I could settle the amount the first collector suggested. They refused and told me it is not 15000 with interest and fees. And if I don't pay back in a month, they will take this one to the court. Seems like I am in deep trouble. I don't have that huge amount with me, of course, and I am worrying about the law suit. Any advice? Any suggestions??
last payment was made in January 2004 and I live in California. And I really appreciate all those information and help. Someone told me that I might find some debt consolidating company. Do you guys think they can give me a good help? what I am really worried is that they might sue me..and their lawer contact my work, and I might lose my job or freeze my paycheck.

I had the same thought that bella said, check to see if you are outside the statute of limitations in your state for collecting the debt.

What state are you in? And, when was the last time you made a charge or a payment? If you have your credit reports, what do they list for the date of last activity?

If you are out of SOL, you are not legally bound to pay. If you are out of SOL, it will be illegal for them to file suit.

It sounds like it must be a pretty old debt if it's been handed off to a second collector and the amount has almost doubled.

DO NOT send them a cease and desist letter at this point. That will leave them no option but to either sell the debt or immediately start the law suit.

I can't really give my opinion on what to do without knowing the SOL in your state, and when you defaulted.

++++++++++edit

The SOL could either be 2 years or 4 years depending on how you obtained the credit card.

2 years - Open, no writing. This 2 year SOL is for "pre-approved" unrequested credit where there was no signed application made.

4 years - Regular cc accounts applied for are the "reduced to writing"

So, if you had received an offer for a credit card, applied and was approved - it would be 2 years. (and you would be out of the legal SOL for collecting)

If you decided one day that you wanted a credit card (without receiving any offer from them first) with <card co. name here> and applied, was approved then it would be 4 years.

Either way, one thing that gets me is the amount they are claiming you owe. It is to fishy and just does not sound right.

Not enough time has passed for the amount of the debt to almost double. That's what people who have had charge offs for 10 years (more or less) might face, not someone who has a 2 year old charge off.

I would suggest sending a debt validation letter. Write up one letter and list BOTH the lawyer and the collection agency on it and send it to both. Send them certified mail return receipt.

Make them PROVE the amount they are claiming is the legal amount.

I would also suggest going to the first link I've provided and do some reading on your state statutes and SOL.
Go to the second link I've provided and start reading in the newbie forum and then in the credit forum. You can find samples of debt validation letters there, plus if you have any questions, feel free to ask them in the credit forum.

Everything on that site is free to read and use. There are many members on that site that have been exactly where you are, and a few that are going through what you are right now.

2006-09-14 13:37:58 by i am in trouble

I was recently served with a Summons in re. to 32K of unpaid credit card debt with JP Morgan/ Chase in Los Angeles through the LA Superior court at Civil/unlimited dept. I looked online to see what I need to respond with and its a bit difficult to figure it out. Does anyone know what forms I need to submit to the lawsuit? Thank you in advance.

First you need to make sure that the debt is within California statute of limitations. In CA it is as follows:
Open Account (credit card): 4 years (2 years if not in writing)
Written Contract: 4 years
The statute starts running from the date the debt was placed into collections (not the date of last missed payment, that only applies to credit reports).

Is the court the right court, the amount you stated is above the $25,000 threshold for most civil cases to be heard in local courts.

Here is a link where you can research and also find the forms you need to file and what to do in your case.

http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/sma llclaims/whatsuedchklist.htm

Hope this helps answer your question.

P.S Nothing can restart the 4 year SOL, it can be temporarily stopped if you are out of state, but will restart when you return. This is known as "tolling" of the statutes.

Hope this answer is of help to you
LEGAL DISCLAIMER: The answer provided here is intended for informational purposes only. It is not intended nor presumed to be legal counsel or professional legal advice

2009-12-11 13:48:32 by Enrico

Chase filed a law suit against my husband for a delinquent credit card. He never had to go to court but they (the law firm) wanted $300/mt until the card was paid off. We're still paying on it and it's a huge budget buster! We only have a few other outstanding/low amount bills. I was wondering if debt consolidation companies would consolidate this Chase bill as well so we can get these people out of our lives!

well you could borrow the money from some other source the source would make a check payable to chase and the other folks you owe money to -- but do not fall in the trap a lot of folks do!!! the are out of debt except for this one big debt and than they take there credit cards and go on a spending junket!!!

2008-09-30 09:51:09 by Alicia H