CA letter from attorney office...best course of action?

[salsa34]

My husband recently received a letter from an attorney's office attempting to collect an old cc debt.  This debt is from several years back and accrued before he had a legal social security number.  He received a green card and SSN a couple years ago, but this was from BEFORE that.  I am not sure how in the world he got a credit card w/out a valid SSN, but I do know he worked with an extremely shady mortgage broker before we were married.  Perhaps the broker "got" him a social in his name that wasn't totally legit and he opened credit with it.  This was back when brokers were doing anything and everything to qualify people that weren't really qualified.

I've checked his credit reports and this debt is not showing on any of them.  Can the CA/attorney still collect the debt?  I assume they could sue him in small claims court if they were able to successfully serve a complaint.

Should I send a DV request as a response?  I don't want to accept responsibility for the debt just yet, but I would like to know what proof they have that this is his debt.

If they have proof and the CA/attorney would really pursue this then I guess we should settle, right?  If we don't clear this up, can they really do anything given that the card is not under his SSN and d.o.b does not match? 

The amount is roughly $1,500.

No lectures please.  I don't endorse hubby's behavior before we got married and he is paying his taxes and all his bills now.  I am just wondering the best way to handle things at this point.  Thanks!

[guiness56]

Do you know the DoFD of the account and if it is outside your states SOL for suing?

[salsa34]

Our state is 6 years, so my guess is that it has another 4 before it is outside SOL.  Can't find out exactly b/c it is NOT showing on any of his credit reports.

Should I just ignore and hope we don't get served with a complaint?  Do they typically just send fishing letters and then pursue those that respond or those with a high balance due?  I can't imagine them expending too much effort over a mere $1,500.  Especially when attorney time can be billed at $200-$300/hour.  It would cost them more to pursue than they would recover.

[guiness56]

Can I ask who the attorney is?  Some attorneys are really CA.

I would not ignore it.  If it is still within SOL they can sue and I have seen them sue for a lot less than $1,500.

First find out about the attorney and/CA.  Can you afford to pay in full?

[salsa34]

It is a real law firm, they do mostly Personal Injury work.  Can't really afford to PIF.  Could pay something just to settle, but not the entire amount.

[Anonymous]

Step 1, DV.

Just because they are a real law firm does not mean the OC or CA told the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth when they retained the firm.

If they legitimately own the debt or are legitimately collecting a debt which is owed and within SOL, a reputable attorney will respond to the DV in a timely fashion with appropriate documentation.

If they do validate, then I would send them a written offer to accept payments in exchange for a PFD when PIF.

[salsa34]

We don't really even need a PFD since it is not showing on any credit report.  Just want to make it go away by paying a portion of the total.

Thanks for the advice.  I'll get them a DV and go from there.

[mauve]

If you settle, be sure to get in writing that this 1) satisfies the debt and 2) they (and the OC) will not report to the CRAs.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Step 1, DV.

Just because they are a real law firm does not mean the OC or CA told the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth when they retained the firm.

If they legitimately own the debt or are legitimately collecting a debt which is owed and within SOL, a reputable attorney will respond to the DV in a timely fashion with appropriate documentation.

If they do validate, then I would send them a written offer to accept payments in exchange for a PFD when PIF.

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An attorney retained by the debt owner is under no obligation whatsoever to DV.  If the attorney is smart, when they get the DV from the debtor they will cull the address and have process served. 

[Anonymous]

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@salsa34 wrote:

My husband recently received a letter from an attorney's office attempting to collect an old cc debt.  This debt is from several years back and accrued before he had a legal social security number.  He received a green card and SSN a couple years ago, but this was from BEFORE that.  I am not sure how in the world he got a credit card w/out a valid SSN, but I do know he worked with an extremely shady mortgage broker before we were married.  Perhaps the broker "got" him a social in his name that wasn't totally legit and he opened credit with it.  This was back when brokers were doing anything and everything to qualify people that weren't really qualified.

I've checked his credit reports and this debt is not showing on any of them.  Can the CA/attorney still collect the debt?  I assume they could sue him in small claims court if they were able to successfully serve a complaint.

Should I send a DV request as a response?  I don't want to accept responsibility for the debt just yet, but I would like to know what proof they have that this is his debt.

If they have proof and the CA/attorney would really pursue this then I guess we should settle, right?  If we don't clear this up, can they really do anything given that the card is not under his SSN and d.o.b does not match? 

The amount is roughly $1,500.

No lectures please.  I don't endorse hubby's behavior before we got married and he is paying his taxes and all his bills now.  I am just wondering the best way to handle things at this point.  Thanks!

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If the debt was incurred by your husband, I would pay it.

From what you have mentioned in follow-up posts, not only is the debt within statute, but there is an issue of fraudulently obtaining credit which would make the debt ineligible for discharge in bankruptcy.  At this point it would appear that the creditor is unaware of the fraudulent nature of the debt, but should that become an issue there could be serious legal repercussions that may directly effect his immigration status.

From a legal perspective, I would find each and every creditor and try to negotiate settlements on all debts resultant from misuse of SSN.  If they are unaware of the issue, they would probably settle for a fraction of what is actually owed.