Ok, say I get a summons from a collections law firm

[optimistic1]

Your credit is already trashed if you have open collections, often times you will file a bankruptcy and your debt/income ration dissappears and your score will go up. Yeah, they will charge you more in interest, but a bk showing on your credit report is not the end of the world. I bought a house, car, and got new credit cards with a BK showing on my credit report, with no questions asked. Yeah times are different, but capitalism still lives on, this whole thing is gonna go away soon.

Calm down, go file your bk and be done with this cat and mouse crap, they will sue, win, and garnish you legitimately opened the account and charged stuff.

[Bell30656]

Two attempts at a summary judgement in one lawsuit. The first time they attempted to get a summary judgement saying that I did not answer the interrogatories within the time frame thus admitted each allegation. I had properly "filed" the answer with the court within the time frame. Summary Judgement motion dismissed at a motion hearing. Which was fun. The lawyer was a local lawyer that knew nothing about the case. He had been retained the day before and only had a simple fax about the case.

Second attempt was the same case. They asked for a summary judgement because I refused to attend arbitration. They didn't even bother to show up for that motion hearing. It was over in 15 minutes. I was the third case called and the other party wasn't present so it was over.

In the second suit a summary judgement was never requested. The third wasn't active long enough due to my filing bankruptcy.

[All Cash]

Then don't file. If your really collection proof. So what if they get a judgment.

[catleg]

Filing an answer will buy you time. Does your state charge for filing an answer? The worst thing you can do is just ignore it and allow them to get a judgement. Contrary to what an earlier poster stated filing an answer does not constitute fraud. You can file an answer denying any and all of the accusations and then it is up to the plaintiff to prove their case. *TIP* File your answer at the courthouse and mail it on the very last day of the answer period. The date that matters is the one stamped by the clerk of court.

After you answer, you can next expect interrogatories from the plaintiff. This will be a list of questions which you have to answer within a certain period. In my state it is 30 days. You can also send them a list of interrogatories. However, they are going to object to all your interrogatories and provide with basically no real answers. Which is what you will do as well.

In my personal experience I was served with three lawsuits: served Nov 2007, Feb 2008 and Oct 2009. When I filed in Dec 2009 none of them had made it to court! As I stated my state does not charge to file an answer. I had zero judgements when I filed my bankruptcy which saved me money with the attorney.

Will your bankruptcy appear in your local paper? Not likely. Where is the court located that you have to file in? Is it the same place that you live? In my case I had to file in Athens, GA but I live in Monroe, GA. If it was published any where it must have been Athens because it sure wasn't in this sleepy little town. I read the paper twice a week (only days it is published).

Did you not face any summary judgment motions from the plaintiffs in your cases? How did you defend against them?

[Bell30656]

Filing an answer will buy you time. Does your state charge for filing an answer? The worst thing you can do is just ignore it and allow them to get a judgement. Contrary to what an earlier poster stated filing an answer does not constitute fraud. You can file an answer denying any and all of the accusations and then it is up to the plaintiff to prove their case. *TIP* File your answer at the courthouse and mail it on the very last day of the answer period. The date that matters is the one stamped by the clerk of court.

After you answer, you can next expect interrogatories from the plaintiff. This will be a list of questions which you have to answer within a certain period. In my state it is 30 days. You can also send them a list of interrogatories. However, they are going to object to all your interrogatories and provide with basically no real answers. Which is what you will do as well.

In my personal experience I was served with three lawsuits: served Nov 2007, Feb 2008 and Oct 2009. When I filed in Dec 2009 none of them had made it to court! As I stated my state does not charge to file an answer. I had zero judgements when I filed my bankruptcy which saved me money with the attorney.

Will your bankruptcy appear in your local paper? Not likely. Where is the court located that you have to file in? Is it the same place that you live? In my case I had to file in Athens, GA but I live in Monroe, GA. If it was published any where it must have been Athens because it sure wasn't in this sleepy little town. I read the paper twice a week (only days it is published).

[HHM]

I really don't want to file, to tell you the truth. I keep putting it off and putting it off hoping we'll win the lottery or something. (I know, not likely ) I just don't want a BK on our credit report or our name in the paper. And then I'll have to keep it a secret from my family members. I just don't wanna do it! Basically, I'm just trying to put it off til the SOL is up. But, with this butthole lawyer calling me, I'm getting worried!

Thanks!

I sort of figured that was the case...

Ask yourself this: why delay the inevitable. Why put off your financial recovery any longer. Grow a pair and file. The WORST decision you can make is waiting. Do you really think that having a slew of missed payments, charge offs, and collection accounts on your credit report is somehow better than a BK? (note, its not).

[junker]

when they first started calling me, and many have,,i first told them i was in the process of gathering all my credit info to file bk. which was definitely going to happen. as soon as i could gather everything... they ALL at that time told me they would note that on the acct and call me back in 60 days to get lawyer info...not saying it will work for you..... but it worked for me...if you are SERIOUSLY going to file in Jan....you MIGHT be able to ask Judge for extension based on the same thing....telling him you are filing bk..i once was granted a extension for a suit because i needed more time to supeona a witness. and wasnt ready....so they DO grant them....also as said before a couple of other threads mention getting 4 month delays.... and since we are almost into october you should be ok......btw i never did file bk..as others have said if you are sued....deny or dispute...in most cases it will buy at least 30 more days...whether its a money issue or waiting so something will fall off as far as requirements to report it...such as wages.checking acct....or recent move from other state...be sure to dispute....

[whyme]

I really don't want to file, to tell you the truth. I keep putting it off and putting it off hoping we'll win the lottery or something. (I know, not likely ) I just don't want a BK on our credit report or our name in the paper. And then I'll have to keep it a secret from my family members. I just don't wanna do it! Basically, I'm just trying to put it off til the SOL is up. But, with this butthole lawyer calling me, I'm getting worried!

Thanks!

[HHM]

Why do you need to wait?

[whyme]

oh. you are saying they are calling you...or have you been served with a summons...agreed its a big difference...they will call a LOT...threatening in various ways...but if you havent been served yet..dont worry...also, yes it seems the dv issue ship has sailed..IF you have been served....are you saying you just recently heard from the ca? are you saying they didnt send a letter warning you?? usually they give you plenty of time to dv....im guessing you do what i do...through the crap in a drawer and forget or ignore it until you get sued....do you know if you are past the statute of limitations in your state?? thats a good defense...what state are you in?? some states dont allow garnishments.....some states allow them to take spouses bank acct. (community property states)the main thing is if you HAVE been sued....answer it, dispute it..deny it...or else you will surely get a judgement quickly, and they can get to your bk acct in as little as two weeks after they get judgement....as the others asked....how much time are you trying to buy?? if eligible try legal aid....they sometimes will answer questions, even if they dont represent you....

No, I haven't been served yet or received ANY kind of correspondence from them, for that matter. Only phone calls at this point, which started about 2 or 3 weeks ago.

I'm not past the SOL yet. Still have a little over a year til then. I'm in Mississippi, which is not a community property state.

See, I would like to wait til maybe around January to file BK, if at all possible. That's my whole issue. Since this is from a collection attorney in my area, I consider that a red flag. They're, more than likely, going to sue, right? But, if I send them a DV letter like next week, will that speed up their litigation process or slow it down?

Thanks for your help!

[junker]

oh. you are saying they are calling you...or have you been served with a summons...agreed its a big difference...they will call a LOT...threatening in various ways...but if you havent been served yet..dont worry...also, yes it seems the dv issue ship has sailed..IF you have been served....are you saying you just recently heard from the ca? are you saying they didnt send a letter warning you?? usually they give you plenty of time to dv....im guessing you do what i do...through the crap in a drawer and forget or ignore it until you get sued....do you know if you are past the statute of limitations in your state?? thats a good defense...what state are you in?? some states dont allow garnishments.....some states allow them to take spouses bank acct. (community property states)the main thing is if you HAVE been sued....answer it, dispute it..deny it...or else you will surely get a judgement quickly, and they can get to your bk acct in as little as two weeks after they get judgement....as the others asked....how much time are you trying to buy?? if eligible try legal aid....they sometimes will answer questions, even if they dont represent you....

[jacko]

I did not respond to my summons and the 20 day response expired a week ago. I won't file until late next year at the earliest. Currently collection proof.

You may want to change your bank to a out of state one if your account is on file with creditors.

A summons is designed to scare the sheat out of you and for you to contact the creditors local collection lawyer. They may or may not file suit. Only BB's magic 8 ball can know..-)

What should I do next? (I may not want to file BK right away but I think I'm about to be sued) What is my defense? Do I actually go to court and fight with a defense of DV? What are the chances of them winning the case and actually being able to validate the debt?

[HHM]

DV's don't stop a lawsuit.

There is a nice court case where the judge says, "A civil complaint is the ultimate validation of a debt."

I agree, the question is not, how much time can you buy, it is, how much time do you need.

What is the reason for delay in filing BK?

[whyme]

you dont mention if this is a jdb sueing you, or ca or oc? also are you past the sol in your state. there are a lot more factors involved than you are telling...... how much time are you trying to buy before a bk...also are you judgement proof?? it all makes a difference...there have been a couple of recent posts stating you can buy a few months delay if done right...but it is NOT fraud..to defend your self...thats ridiculous...you can say you dont owe the debt for many different reasons..some might slow a jdb or ca...but less likely an oc

It's a collections law firm located in my general area that keeps calling me. I'm not saying that I don't owe the debt, I would really just like to buy some time. How much time can I buy if I send a dv letter?

[junker]

you dont mention if this is a jdb sueing you, or ca or oc? also are you past the sol in your state. there are a lot more factors involved than you are telling...... how much time are you trying to buy before a bk...also are you judgement proof?? it all makes a difference...there have been a couple of recent posts stating you can buy a few months delay if done right...but it is NOT fraud..to defend your self...thats ridiculous...you can say you dont owe the debt for many different reasons..some might slow a jdb or ca...but less likely an oc