wife agreed to pay a credit card debt of her dead mother.

Submitted by key39_2000 on Sat, 03/20/2010 - 08:48
Forums

Hi

My New Bride has been paying a credit card debt that belonged to her mother...she said a lawyer contacted her last year and told her they were going to sue...she didn't reply to the letter and finally she agreed to a payment plan..

My question is there any recourse I can take..this debt is for over $25,000..

1.Everything my wife tells me lead me to believe she was an Authorized User on the account and not a joint account holder....
2.The debt was very old and the SOL differently expired but she didn't know this information...
3.The law company sent a letter after I questioned them about this debt and it basically spells out the agreement she made with them and that it was litigated in court already....
4. can I do anything about this now....????
any help would be appreciated...

Thanks
Keith

P.s
Her mother died 9 yrs ago....

Name of the Bank
your state
name of the attorney and Collection Agency

Sat, 03/20/2010 - 17:35 Permalink
Keith (not verified)

The bank in question is Bank Of America and the charges were all made in Califonia however my wife moved to NJ in 1999 and the account was closed by her mother in 1998...

The attorney's name is Goldman & Warshaw located at 34 Maple Ave Suite 101 Pine Brook, NJ 07058

the name of the collection agency is NCO PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT..

THANKS

Keith

Sun, 03/21/2010 - 19:08 Permalink

I would send a 623 letter to NCO. You looking information about the account holder. I would tell NCO that you are disputing your wife's responsibility for the BofA debt.

Did you wife ever enter a payment plan?

Sun, 03/21/2010 - 22:03 Permalink

Does your wife know what court house the judgment is with, if not get a copy of her credit report and see where it was filed.

Get a copy of the judgment and see who's name is on it.

I would also suggest getting a lawyer to talk about this. Even if your wife was not a joint account holder, she might have been the beneficiary of the estate making it possible for them to come after her.

You really need a lawyer - dealing with this high of an amount on a judgment. Good luck with this matter.

Mon, 03/22/2010 - 05:17 Permalink

Hi Key,

In some states agreeing to a payment too can restart the Statute of Limitations (SOL). Thus, you need to check on this. If the SOL has not been restarted, you can send a "cease and desist" letter to the company, mentioning that you are aware of your rights. You will be able to get a sample "cease and desist" letter at http://www.creditmagic.org/repair/cease-desist-letter.html .

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Aaron

Mon, 03/22/2010 - 06:08 Permalink

I would try complaining to the OCC.

office of the comptroller of the currency

Mon, 03/22/2010 - 23:00 Permalink
key39_2000@yahoo.com (not verified)

Hi All

Thanks to all who have answered this post... in response to cinnamongirl's question about a 623 letter...

I read something about this letter you wrote in another post basically what I gather is you are questing how they got the information to place a negative file in her credit report....

I pulled My wife's credit report and this charge is not on it...I repeat there is no reference to this charge or account on her credit report...I don't know why, if she was an authorized user somebody should have reported her payments on her credit report...it could have fallen off since this matter is at least 12yrs old....I doubt it because they was a lot of other negative stuff on her account like late payments on cards that clearly should have been removed because it's been over 10yrs on her credit report..

I believe all negative reference is on her mother's credit report...I'm temped to try and pull her report just to see what's on it....

2nd question you asked
Did you wife ever enter a payment plan?
yes she has been paying 400.00 a month for the past 6 months....
of course she stopped paying until I can look into this matter...

in response to nightstar's question
I have a copy of the STIPULATION OF SETTLEMENT..which was posted in my local superior court in Atlantic city on Oct 1 2009...
It seems I need to have this judgment vacated but how? I don't have any real excuse for why she didn't go to court...then again I don't think this ever went to court she just settled to whatever terms they requested....

My next step is to find me a consumer lawyer and get their advise...I will keep everyone informed...

to that last question Aaron posted If we were starting from the beginning I probably could have used SOL defense with no problem but where we are at I don't think so, because she has been paying for the past 6 moths..any way my defense is she don't owe this money because she is not liable for the credit card account....her mother was....

thanks again
Keith

Wed, 03/24/2010 - 03:53 Permalink

Paying can restart the Sol on your own debts but this is a strange situation.

Authorized users shouldn't get those tradelines listed on their reports. it happens and people use it to build credit but, it is a valid reason for deletion.

Is it possible that your wife didn't go to court because this isn't her debt?

I do think that you need an attorney at this point. What does the judgment say is the basis for suing her? Are they suing the estate?

Wed, 03/24/2010 - 10:33 Permalink

I have read this post in full and also believe you need to contact an atty. This whole thing does not sit well with me? You could also call your atty general for your state and let him or her assist you. This is what they are trained to do. It sounds like you found a judgment. Was it for your mother in law or wife? If she was only an authorized user she can not be held liable for the account. You really need to contact an atty before putting anymore money into paying this debt. It may just save you and your wife money.

Wed, 03/24/2010 - 11:26 Permalink