Help please

[Under_rated]

What is the name of your state? Michigan

Hello! Last year sometime I was served a paper to appear in court but I was out of town it was for a voluntary repossession. I had already wrote a letter to the court explaining my situation and asking if the date can be pushed up until i get back home but no response. The people that served the letter served it to my niece which was and still a minor at the time. Can they do that? Serve papers to a minor? I thought it had to be me that they served it to

 

[Litigator22]

A literal construction of the Michigan Court Rules would find that you were not effectively served with process. (MCR 2.105(A)(1) Thus leaving you an opportunity to attempt to obtain relief from the default judgment. (MCR 2.612(B) Provided, that is that your motion for relief is filed within one year of the entry of the judgment.

However, the fact that the return of services shows that your niece and not you were personally served with the summon would not be sufficientt cause in itself to allow you to have the judgment vacated. You must also establish that you had no actual notice of the existence of the lawsuit.

Additionally you must show that you have good reasons justifying relief from the judgment which has been interpreted to mean that you have a meritorious defense to the action. (See: Lawrence M. Clarke, Inc. vs. Richo Construction, Inc., et al. , Michigan Supreme Court Docket No. 139394 (June 2011)

 

[justalayman]

The fact you responded to the summons by way of attempting to reschedule the hearing shows you had notice of the hearing.

On top of that and to translate the other guys post;

If the suit was valid and you cannot show a reason you may have won, you don’t get to vacate the judgment.


So what is the problem you are faced with from that hearing that you are trying to change?

 

[LdiJ]

The fact you responded to the summons by way of attempting to reschedule the hearing shows you had notice of the hearing.

On top of that and to translate the other guys post;

If the suit was valid and you cannot show a reason you may have won, you don’t get to vacate the judgment.


So what is the problem you are faced with from that hearing that you are trying to change?

Regarding the bolded...Huh? While I do not disagree that this case probably won't get vacated because the OP basically indicated that he/she had been served by responding to the case, it is NOT necessary to show a reason that a person may have won a case to get a case vacated. It is merely necessary to show that due process was not followed.

 

[justalayman]

Regarding the bolded...Huh? While I do not disagree that this case probably won't get vacated because the OP basically indicated that he/she had been served by responding to the case, it is NOT necessary to show a reason that a person may have won a case to get a case vacated. It is merely necessary to show that due process was not followed.

i was trying to translate litigators statement. Based on his citation, yes, even if one can seek to have the judgment vacated due to improper service, to successfully have the judgment vacated one must also show they had a snowballs chance in hell of winning the original suit.

In other words the courts aren’t going to allow a do over if it is appearent you would have lost anyway.

It isn’t a matter of due process since the case cited actually side steps due process in the name of frugality. It’s a matter of actually having a defense to the original suit and not wasting the courts time relitigsting something that isn’t going to change.

 

[Under_rated]

The fact you responded to the summons by way of attempting to reschedule the hearing shows you had notice of the hearing.

On top of that and to translate the other guys post;

If the suit was valid and you cannot show a reason you may have won, you don’t get to vacate the judgment.


So what is the problem you are faced with from that hearing that you are trying to change?

They didn't properly serve me. They served a minor an at that harassed her and she has a disability. They waited until my mother went down the street to knock on the door.

 

[justalayman]

They didn't properly serve me. They served a minor an at that harassed her and she has a disability. They waited until my mother went down the street to knock on the door.

How would you know the waited until your mother left the house? You said you weren’t there. How would she know ? How do you know they harassed your niece?


Anyway, if you think it will benefit you, have at it.

Don’t forget this from litigator22:

Additionally you must show that you have good reasons justifying relief from the judgment which has been interpreted to mean that you have a meritorious defense to the action. (See: Lawrence M. Clarke, Inc. vs. Richo Construction, Inc., et al. , Michigan Supreme Court Docket No. 139394 (June 2011)


You do have a meritorious defense, right?

Beyond that, you do realize that even if you are successful they can simply sue you again, right?

 

[Under_rated]

My niece told my mom and the lady on the corner seen them go up to my mom house once she went down the street. My niece is partially deaf out of one ear.

 

[Under_rated]

No, I didn't know they can sue me again.

 

[quincy]

What was repossessed?

Do you have a defense to the judgment?

 

[Under_rated]

A car.

I was not properly... I did not know they can serve anybody a paper on my behalf

 

[quincy]

Okay.

You mentioned in your first post that the repossession was voluntary. What was the judgment for?

If you had been properly served and you appeared in court for the hearing, do you think there still would have been a judgment against you as a result - or did you have a defense to the claim filed against you?