Summons

[Anonymous]

I need some advise and direction: I live in CA and I have received a court summons for a debit originating with Aspire Visa. The CA was Midland Funding LLV vs me. An attorney filed this complaint. The original amount when I defaulted was $ 7128.25. The amount now is for $8150.58. The summons is dated by the courts 3/14/2008. I received the summons through HR at my work on 4/11 and it is dated by the serving person 4/3. Today I received a mailed copy via mail. I moved 2 months ago and forwarding mail is slow. 1. Can I get a summons given to me by the human resources dept at my work? Or by mail? Both are legal? 2. If the summons states 30 days to respond and I received it on 4/11, dated 4/3 is it still 30 days and too bad for me? I was in debit so bad and have cleaned it all but this one up, due to large amount. The settlement offers were never below $6000. So I could not get this one done. Now it has reared it's ugly head, in the worst way. This is my plan since going to court makes me physically ill, and not showing up means they get how ever much $$ they want and my wages are garnished: I have finally gotten my credit up to an OK level. And thanks to everyone on the forum, because this is the place I learned how get it together. Get a personal loan to pay off. I hate to do it but have no choice. But do I pay the $7124.45 or the $8150.58? And who do I pay at this point or speak with? Any good choices for personal loans? Score as of 4/22/08: TU 616; EQ 662; EX 602 It was down to 557! Thanks so much.

[Anonymous]

robmod wrote:
I need some advise and direction: I live in CA and I have received a court summons for a debit originating with Aspire Visa. The CA was Midland Funding LLV vs me. An attorney filed this complaint. The original amount when I defaulted was $ 7128.25. The amount now is for $8150.58. The summons is dated by the courts 3/14/2008. I received the summons through HR at my work on 4/11 and it is dated by the serving person 4/3. Today I received a mailed copy via mail. I moved 2 months ago and forwarding mail is slow. 1. Can I get a summons given to me by the human resources dept at my work? Or by mail? Both are legal?

Call your county courthouse and ask what is considered proper service in jurisdiction.

2. If the summons states 30 days to respond and I received it on 4/11, dated 4/3 is it still 30 days and too bad for me?

When you are on the phone asking the above, ask when the 30 days begins to run and what you need to do to answer a summons.

I was in debit so bad and have cleaned it all but this one up, due to large amount. The settlement offers were never below $6000. So I could not get this one done. Now it has reared it's ugly head, in the worst way. This is my plan since going to court makes me physically ill, and not showing up means they get how ever much $$ they want and my wages are garnished: I have finally gotten my credit up to an OK level. And thanks to everyone on the forum, because this is the place I learned how get it together. Get a personal loan to pay off. I hate to do it but have no choice.

 But do I pay the $7124.45 or the $8150.58? And who do I pay at this point or speak with?

First, what is DOLA? Make sure it isn't past SOL. If within SOL you need to negotiate with the lawyer. If within SOL, see if you can get a personal loan. If you can, start negotiating. Depending on how old it is is how much you want to start with. They will counter offer more than likely if they don't accept your offer.

I had a friend recently sued over HSBC debt, was being sued for just over $11k, original debt around $7400........they settled for $4400. Cost her $250 for a lawyer to negotiate with them.

 Any good choices for personal loans? Score as of 4/22/08: TU 616; EQ 662; EX 602 It was down to 557! Thanks so much.

Whatever you do, you want to answer the summons from what I've read on here. The lawyer or (sometimes yourself) can get the first court date postponed so that you all have time to negotiate and settle before court.

Message Edited by sidewinder on 04-22-2008 07:58 PM

Message Edited by sidewinder on 04-22-2008 08:00 PM

[Anonymous]

DOLA is 9/2005 Within the SOL Any advise on a person loan company? I would like to shot for the best bet. I really hate to have a lot of inquiries on my CR searching for companies. Working too hard to see it slide down. If the rate % is on the high it is OK. I plan cash in personal time off hours for $$ at work in July and plan to pay the loan down with this. Thanks for the suggestions. Much appreciated.

[MattH]

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@Anonymous wrote:
DOLA is 9/2005 Within the SOL Any advise on a person loan company? I would like to shot for the best bet. I really hate to have a lot of inquiries on my CR searching for companies. Working too hard to see it slide down. If the rate % is on the high it is OK. I plan cash in personal time off hours for $$ at work in July and plan to pay the loan down with this. Thanks for the suggestions. Much appreciated.

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Talk to a LAWYER first, before talking to anybody else. Even if you decide to take out a loan, it is wise to speak with a lawyer first for many reasons.

1. The lawyer may get a lot farther than you in negotiating payment terms and schedule with the creditor. A negotiated payment plan may allow you to avoid taking out an expensive loan that you regret down the road.

2. Borrowing to pay off debt is like using gasoline to put out a fire.

3. Unlike those employed by the creditor, unlike those who work at places where you might apply for a loan, your lawyer will have a fiduciary duty to represent YOUR best interests and give the advice s/he considers to be in YOUR best interest. Any reasonably competent lawyer you retain will become a person you can TRUST at a time when you cannot trust anybody else involved.

4. If the creditor knows you have retained a lawyer, then they will be much more careful about what they say in written and oral communications to you, knowing they are a lot more likely to get caught if they try to pull a fast one on you.

5. If you end up bringing in anybody else, such as a credit counselor or financial planner, your lawyer can be an extremely valuable resource in dealing with them. Aside from anything else, when you are talking with prospective advisers, if they know you will be running everything they ask you to sign by your lawyer they will be much less likely to pull a fast one on you.

6. Lawyers know each other and every other local lawyer will be seeing yours many times in the future, which is another motivation for them to behave themselves when interacting with your lawyer.

[Anonymous]

It is very true, I trust no one at this point. Is there a specific type of lawyer I look for? I live in a small town. What do lawyers cost? I have never needed one. Again, thanks for the advise. Power in knowledge!

[MattH]

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@Anonymous wrote:
It is very true, I trust no one at this point. Is there a specific type of lawyer I look for? I live in a small town. What do lawyers cost? I have never needed one. Again, thanks for the advise. Power in knowledge!

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A small town is actually GOOD in this case, there won't be many lawyers and all of them should be trustworthy because their local reputations will depend on that. Ask relatives, ask clergy, as friends, or just look in the phone book. As for what they cost, almost certainly much less than it might cost you NOT talking to one immediately because a clock is ticking on that summons. In any case, most lawyers don't charge anything for the initial consultation so you can make an appointment today and discuss fees during that consultation. I live in an expensive area so what a lawyer would cost me has no bearing on the much lower fees you are likely to pay in a small town.

[Anonymous]

MattH wrote:

Talk to a LAWYER first, before talking to anybody else. Even if you decide to take out a loan, it is wise to speak with a lawyer first for many reasons.

1. The lawyer may get a lot farther than you in negotiating payment terms and schedule with the creditor. A negotiated payment plan may allow you to avoid taking out an expensive loan that you regret down the road.

2. Borrowing to pay off debt is like using gasoline to put out a fire.

I agree with this to a point. However, when you are talking about avoiding a judgment, I can understand borrowing to pay it off. You DO NOT want a judgment on your credit report.

3. Unlike those employed by the creditor, unlike those who work at places where you might apply for a loan, your lawyer will have a fiduciary duty to represent YOUR best interests and give the advice s/he considers to be in YOUR best interest. Any reasonably competent lawyer you retain will become a person you can TRUST at a time when you cannot trust anybody else involved.

4. If the creditor knows you have retained a lawyer, then they will be much more careful about what they say in written and oral communications to you, knowing they are a lot more likely to get caught if they try to pull a fast one on you.

Once a creditor knows you are represented by an attorney they are not allowed to communicate with you UNLESS they can not get a reply from the lawyer within a reasonable time period.

5. If you end up bringing in anybody else, such as a credit counselor or financial planner, your lawyer can be an extremely valuable resource in dealing with them. Aside from anything else, when you are talking with prospective advisers, if they know you will be running everything they ask you to sign by your lawyer they will be much less likely to pull a fast one on you.

6. Lawyers know each other and every other local lawyer will be seeing yours many times in the future, which is another motivation for them to behave themselves when interacting with your lawyer.

[Anonymous]

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robmod wrote:
It is very true, I trust no one at this point. Is there a specific type of lawyer I look for? I live in a small town. What do lawyers cost? I have never needed one. Again, thanks for the advise. Power in knowledge!

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Ideally you want a lawyer who deals with consumer law. Depending on where you live, you may or may not find one close by. I live in a small town as well. The lawyer my friend had to handle her lawsuit didn't specialize in consumer law, but he said he had experience handling lawsuits from creditors/judgments.

Her lawyer only negotiated for her and it never went to court so it only cost her $250.

Check your local credit union for loans. You can always check out prosper and you don't take a hard inquiry unless you get your loan. www.prosper.com 

Whether you decide to get a lawyer and let them negotiate or just do it yourself, you need to call and find out how long you have to answer your summons and how you are to do it.

[Anonymous]

Great advise guys. Feel better, like I have a game plan. It helps so much when people understand this type situation. With the following FICO score, are they considered Fair or Good for a loan application? Score as of 4/22/08: EQ 662 EX 602 TU 616

[Anonymous]

Did you get these scores from this website? If so, click on score analysis and it will tell you how they are considered.