Advice on Court Summons for Debt

Submitted by andyth on Fri, 11/06/2009 - 19:17
Forums

You really got lucky settling a $4000 debt for that amount, it must have been a really old debt.

As far as this one, how old is it? What is your states statute of limitations? The original creditor will not get involved at this point. You could request debt validation, have you done that yet? You can do that, there are many sample letters here on the forum.

You will get lots of advice on here, you will get enough to make a good decision. I can tell you that industry standard is between 70 and 80% of the debt, you can do the math. Goodluck, hope you find some resolution that works for you.

Sat, 11/07/2009 - 01:35 Permalink

Hi and welcome, Unfortunatley if they have already served you the summons they are more willing to take this to court and get the full asking amount. First are you sure this debt is with in the Statute of Limitations? If so then I would send a debt validation letter to them. You still must answer the summons or risk losing to them. I would contact them if the date of your hearing is not real soon and ask them for validation and tell them if they can show you this you would be more than willing to make payment arrangements. Some will take payment arrangements but others will want the money owed in full to avoid court.

Sat, 11/07/2009 - 01:39 Permalink

They may do a judgement by consent, which will be lifted as soon as you pay the amount that you have settled on. Just make sure that you get any agreement in writing that way when the whole thing is over they honor their agreement.

Make sure they put in the agreement that they will remove any entry on your report, you don't want to pay it and then end up with a negative on your report.

Sat, 11/07/2009 - 01:44 Permalink

I have never heard of a judgment by consent. Can you explain what this exactly is? I am thinking that both parties agree to pay a certain debt or amount and when each fulfills their end of the deal they can get the judgment removed. If this is so it is a wonderful idea as long as the ex would agree. Something tells me she may not be too concerned and an atty may have to be brought in. I walso wonder if going to a magistrate or small claims court would be possible. It could avoid atty fees that we all know can add up quickly and depending on the debt amount may not be worth it.

Sat, 11/07/2009 - 02:05 Permalink

A judgement by consent means that you have made a payment arrangement, a temporary judgement is filed with your consent at the court house, once you have paid the account off and all of the agreement is done then the judgement goes a way like it never existed. However, you must get all your parts into the agreement also, like that it will be removed or updated once satisfied, ideally you would want it removed.

It is for the collectors protection and it keeps the matter out of court, but have no doubt it is a very powerful tool for the collector so know what you are getting into before you agree and make sure that you are fully represented and get what you want out of the deal in the beginning.

Sat, 11/07/2009 - 03:11 Permalink