Help going to court!

[coosi]

Can you borrow the $438.00? They might accept that in a lump. Everything needs to be on paper.

I'm not an expert here, so I'll let someone else answer, except DON'T write them a check

 

[Sun82]

what exactly is a judgement? How do I go about answering the charge? I have 30days to do it. what happens after that?

 

[MrKee]

cf6 is right! File an answer, immediately send a validation request to Midland, and appear in court. Calling a CA on the phone is NEVER a good idea, IMO. If you want to propose a settlement, then do it in writing via CRRR mail.

I have been sued by a CA before and was just like you, nervous as heck. But the first hearing is not going to be that bad. Request validation immediately. Chances are you can get Midland in a FDCPA violation and sue them, which gives you good leverage to get them to dismiss their suit. Suing in small claims is not difficult at all, you just need to do a little research.

The absolute worst thing you can do at this point is not show up and get a default judgment.

A few questions...

Have you ordered your credit reports to see if and how Midland is reporting this account?

When was your first delinquincy with Providian?

Chill, bro, its not gonna be all that bad!

mrkee

 

[Sun82]

Ok what is a judgement? I don't understand all these apprivations CA? CRRR mail? FDCPA ? I am getting more and more confused as this goes on.
First off, how do I file an answer? Is it better to wait to file, so i can save some money? Will the court date immediatly take forth after I file an answer? I am very new to all this, its very confusing.. I'm not going to fight it since, its my fault, but i dont want them to take advantage of me.

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Ok what is a judgement? I don't understand all these apprivations CA? CRRR mail? FDCPA ? I am getting more and more confused as this goes on.
First off, how do I file an answer? Is it better to wait to file, so i can save some money? Will the court date immediatly take forth after I file an answer? I am very new to all this, its very confusing.. I'm not going to fight it since, its my fault, but i dont want them to take advantage of me.

My response:

Sun82, I don't think there's any amount of explaining that we can do that would help you understand. In fact, I don't think you'd understand even if you had a "How To" book in front of you.

I suggest that you just throw your hands up, and let the chips fall where they may. Sometimes, you have to just realize that there are lost causes, and this, for you, is one of them.

Good luck anyway.

IAAL

 

[MrKee]

I'm not going to fight it since, its my fault, but i dont want them to take advantage of me.

If you've made the decision not to fight it, then there are only a couple of options for you...

1. Try and send the CA (CA= Collection Agency) a settlement proposal in the range that was suggested (25% to 40% of the total debt). But you better be prepared to pay your suggested amount all at once and don't be surprised if they reject or don't even respond to your offer to settle.

2. Show up in court..admit its your debt.. and get a judgment against you. You sound pretty much judgment proof (no assets, no income) but expect it to haunt you for a long time.

3. Don't show up..get a judgment against you.

On the other hand, should you decide to fight it...then just ask for help.

mrkee

 

[Ladynred]

Sun,
I gave you links to information that will guide you in doing your Answer to the court - go to those links and read. Print out the forms that are available, its really all there laid out FOR you. Just get a grip, breathe, and follow the instructions.

As for the abbreviations:
FDCPA - Fair Debt Collections Practices Act - it governs ALL debt collectors and it outlines what they can and can NOT do when trying to collect a debt. This is FEDERAL LAW !

You can read the Act here - its in fairly plain English:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fdcpa/fdcpact.htm

The section on Validation, which has been suggested here, is Section 809. If you want to learn more on that, go to http://www.creditinfocenter.com.


CA = Collection Agency

CMRRR or CRRR - Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested

Judgment - is a legal decision against you and FOR the entity/creditor/collection agency that is suing you. It gives them LEGAL means to FORCE you to pay the debt you are being sued for, usually on THEIR terms. The means of enforcing the judgment and collection of the monies owed includes wage garnishment, bank levy (where they freeze and drain your bank account), judicial liens against real property, and siezure of NON-Exempt property that they will sell to satisfy the debt. Judgments last 10, 20, or more YEARS and as long as it is unpaid they can keep hounding you for payment.

Do NOT call Midland on the phone and talk about settlements. Draw up a settlement offer, including a payment plan if you can't come up with the lump sum, and MAIL the letter to them Certified, return receipt requested. You will get a green receipt and once they get your letter, you will receive the green card itself back, signed by them. It is your proof that they DID receive your letter and it is crucial to keep that evidence in case they try to LIE and say they didn't get it.

IF you offer a settlement, say the $438, BEFORE this goes to court, and they accept it, do NOT agree to send them ANY money over the phone. Insist on a signed agreement from them, in your hands, before you send them a dime.

If they won't agree before the court date, then take the SAME settlement offer to court with you and have it ready for their lawyer when the judge sends you out to negotiate a settlement.

I don't mean to sound harsh, but unless you can afford a lawyer, you're going to have to get ahold of yourself, educate yourself as quickly as you can, and get your head on straight to deal with this, otherwise they WILL win by default - and that's what they are hoping for. They WANT you to curl up in a corner in fear and LET them win, they don't ever expect a fight, and they don't expect you to show up in court either, so BE THERE.

 

[Sun82]

The papers don't have a court date on it, so what am I supposed to do? contact the CA to answer the charge?

 

[MrKee]

Sun,

You would file your answer with the court, not the CA. Your court can help you if your unfamiliar with the procedures.

By the way, what strategy have you chosen? Are you going to attempt to settle or to fight it? Further advice would depend upon your intentions.

You can find some good samples of debt validation requests at artofcredit.com.

MrKee

 

[Ladynred]

Yeah.. and then LizardKing and FlyingIFR would turn around and try to get the O.P. to sue the CA, the lawyer, the OC and on ad nauseum....

 

[MrKee]

Sometimes the best defense is an aggressive offense!

I can only speak from my experiences, but I took the same type of 'aggressive' action as LK or FlyingIFG probably would have with a particular CA in a very similar circumstace to Sun's. First, I let the CA 'hang themselves' by racking up multiple FDCPA and FCRA violations. When I knew I had 'em, I sent a very stern ITS letter with an opportunity for the CA to settle (by deleting the tradelines, no money was exchanged).

Within 6 hours of signing for the ITS, the CA had agreed to settle, had sent me an apology letter, and a copy of the Universal Data Forms used to request deletion of the trade lines with all three CRA's.

Of course, the best action for Sun would be to learn his/her rights under the FCRA and FDCPA.

MrKee

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

My response:

MrKee, and Coosi - - I applaud the both of you for your efforts and for MrKee's successes. However, if you haven't figured it out yet, and from the tenor of his responses, Sun82 doesn't get or understand a word were saying to him. It's like speaking Greek. The more you discuss, the more confused and befuddled Sun82 becomes.

I fear that Sun83 is going nowhere with his problem, and our repeated efforts to explain things to him is compared to a car smashing into a brick wall at 100 mph. Seriously, reread the responses and Sun82's questions. It's as plain as day that he's just not getting it.

Simply stated, it's not going to happen for him.

IAAL

 

[MrKee]

My response:

Simply stated, it's not going to happen for him.

IAAL

IAAL,

I understand what you're saying....you can lead a horse to water, but....

As I stated earlier, the best action for Sun is to learn his/her rights under the FDCPA and FCRA...and quickly. The worst thing Sun can do is stay scared and do nothing. But Sun will have to do this on his/her own. We can give all the advice in the world, but it's up to Sun to decide if and how to take charge of this problem.

Sun, once again, if I were you...

1) I'd file an answer to the summons with the court. Make sure you do this in a timely manner, like now. If you don't understand how to do this, go to your court house and ask. They will help you.
2) I'd pull all three credit reports and see how this debt is being reported. Look for possible re-aging of the account, or other information which may not be reported correctly.
3) I'd immediately send the CA (Midland) a validation request letter via CRRR. Once you've gotten the green card back, then dispute the debt with the three consumer reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion).

Chances are....the CA could have re-aged the debt which is a FDCPA violation, or you'll find or catch the CA in some other kind of FDCPA or FCRA violation. Why? Because most CA's expect you to be scared, hide your tail between your legs, and do nothing. You don't show up for the court hearing and they'll get a default judgment. Then they can attach any assets or attempt to garnish your wages. The judgment will hang over you like a bad cloud until you finally pay it off. But if you catch them in a violation, they'll probably drop their collection efforts in exchange for you dropping your FDCPA/FCRA suit against them.

If you choose not to fight it, then you might try to settle it. BUT DO IT IN WRITING. If you call them, they'll quickly figure out how uninformed and scared you are, and they will have very little motivation to settle at all, or to settle with favorable terms for you. But if you insist on trying to settle, you might try this approach.

1) First, fire off a debt validation letter. This will let the know you are an 'informed' consumer.
2) Wait a few days, and then send them a settlement offer. Offer to settle for around 25% of the original debt. Give them 3 business days to accept your offer. Be prepared to pay the whole 25% at once, and probably within 7 days of settling. Include in your settlement proposal the contigency that they delete any negative trade lines they might be reporting to any CRA (consumer reporting agency).

But don't be surprised if they don't accept ANY settlement proposal before your first court hearing. They know there is still the chance you won't show, and they could get a default judgment for the whole amount.

You can find sample debt validation letters and settlement letters all over the net. Do some research, lose your fears, and put this problem behind you.

At least that's my two pesos...
MrKee