God, help me!

[FloridaGirl]

I just got a copy of my credit report and it still a mess! Only a few companies reported the BK. Not only that, but there is a judgment listed at the very top right under the BK listing. I knew about the judgment, but I thought it would be taken off. Remember, I ranted about the judgment in another forum because I thought my attorney messed me up. I went to him as soon as I got the notice of hearing in the mail, and he told me he would send a letter to them saying I was filing. He said his letter would stall the court date until I could file BK. So, now here we are, and the damn thing is on my credit report. Damn my attorney that I paid 800 dollars to! I would advise anyone with no assets to do your own BK...attorney's make it worse for you.

So, anyways...now what should I do? Is there a way to have this damn judgment taken off? I'm so mad. And how long should it take for companies to correctly report a BK discharge? Should I give them more time, or go ahead and write to Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion? I could juct cry! This is all so confusing. I had no idea how hard filing BK was going to be, and I had no idea how much leg work I'd have to do. I thought I would just pay the attorney, and everything else would fall into place. how dumb, huh?

To sum it up...
1. How long should I give companies to correctly report a BK?
2. Can I have this judgment removed since this company was included in the BK?
3. If I write to the credit agencies, will they correct my report?

Thanks!

[HHM]

In answer to your summed up questions.

1. two months from date of discharge
2. This is a bigger problem, if a judgment was actually taken against you, you should do a few more things, you may want to reopen your BK case to get it extinguished by filing a Motion to Avoid Lien. However, as a general note, if a judgment was taken against you, regardless of its status in BK (whether you avoid the lien or not) it will be reported for up to 7 years. Afterall, the fact that there is a judgment against you is a accurate fact about your credit history and therefore can be reported on your credit report.
3. They might, what you right is a dispute letter, disputing the inaccurate entry, the credit agencies fowards your dispute to the reporting creditor for verification...

[tinroofrusted]

START DISPUTING.

Under law, the credit agencies MUST correct false information on a consumer credit report.

Don't wait for the company to do it, get the ball rolling yourself!

[FloridaGirl]

Thanks for the advice...but I have an even bigger problem now. Upon investigating my BK paerwork, I found that my attorney didn't even send a "suggestion of bankruptcy" to the CC company that sued me until 2 months after the case went to court. I thought he sent it in November '04 (after I paid him) and he sent it in February '05....the case was heard and judged in December '04. What a mess.

[HHM]

Well, you could attempt to file a complaint with your State Bar Association against this attorney.

Incidently, how much is the judgment for?

[FloridaGirl]

Too much for me to ever even think of paying. $19,000 is what it amounted to, by the time they tacked on Court Costs.