@Heavanly1 wrote:
@New-Girl wrote:
I have a judgement from September 2004. It is almost due to come off my credit report (around September). Dominion Law Associates wants me to pay it right away. They will settle for 60% in two payments with $100.00 deposit by Monday. Are they trying to get any type of payment so they can doing something else? The original amount was around $2000.00 but now it is almost $8000.00.
1.Should I wait until it comes off my credit report before I make any type of settlement?
I wouldn't recommend that. The creditor has already received a judgment against you and the legal means to collect it. If they are willing to settle the debt for 60% of the judgement amount, get the agreement in writing and then submit your payments.
2.Should I see a lawyer and see they can negotiate a reduced amount?
I don't think that would help you much. Any savings you gain by hiring an attorney would be negated by the price the attorney would charge you.
3. Can they go to court and reissue another judgement or something so it stays on my credit report?
Yes. Depending upon your state, the judgement will be valid from 10-20 years. The creditor can go back to court and get the judgement renewed. Though many judgements are removed at the 7 year mark, unpaid judgements can remain until they are paid.
4. Can they take money out of my checking account?
Yes, the creditors can use the judgement to freeze your bank account or garnish your wages.
I apologize. I am new to the boards and I have tried to find the answers but I am a novice.
There are so many inaccuracies here.
1. With a judgment, sometimes waiting for it to fall off your credit report before attempting to settle offers no clear advantage. The judgment will fall off no matter what under clearly defined circumstances whether you satisfy it or not. What is usually a prime factor to consider is the statute of limitations (SOL) in your state for the enforcement of judgments. If the SOL has expired, you are usually in a stronger position to negotiate.
Now, the question is, "Should you settle?" While on its face 60% seems quite good, your debt is already 400% higher than what it originally was. I would look at the actual court documents and see just what the judgment amount was and what costs were added to reach $8,000. You need to be very careful with Dominion as many believe they are more your average cesspool CA than a law firm. That said, what will Dominion do to enforce their judgment? Will they garnish your wages? Will they attach your bank accounts? Use the judgment to create a lien on any property you own? Do you even live in Virginia? Were you served properly when they sued you? Did they obtain a default judgment? Are you serving in the Armed Forces? I would have a local attorney look at this and if you feel that Dominion has the desire, ability and track record to aggressively enforce their judgment, 60% may be ok.
2. Anybody who ever advises you to not see an attorney is not at all credible. There are many free or low-cost alternatives available when it comes to getting legal advice. For example, the Virginia State Bar operates the Virginia Lawyer Referral Service which will advise you if you even need an attorney and then set you up with a 1/2 hour initial consultation for $35. Dealing with Dominion, $35 is money well spent.
3. It is totally false that unpaid judgments can remain on your credit report until paid. Judgments in, for example, Virginia, are valid for 10 years and can be renewed for a further 10 years, though the vast majority of judgments are not renewed by judgment creditors. In any event, this only refers to the judgment itself and not how long it may appear on your credit report. Judgments may be reported on your credit report for a period of time not to exceed the state's statute of limitations on enforcement of the judgment whether or not the judgment has been paid. This means that, in theory, the judgment can remain for 10 years and, depending on the method used by the state for renewal of judgments, possibly for an additional 10 years in Virginia. However, in practice, each of the credit reporting agencies will drop the judgment from your credit report after 7 years -- whether or not it is paid.
4. Depending on state law, judgment creditors generally can garnish wages and / or seize bank accounts. There are, however, exceptions. For example, certain sources of income cannot be attached. If your bank account contains, fo example, SSI payments, the account cannot be levied against. Still, the judgment creditor can try and it is up to you to defeat their attempt. The bad part, however, is that your bank will levy a fee each time the judgment creditor does try to attach your bank account whether the attempt is successful or not. If you are worried about your bank accounts being raided, there are steps you can take to eliminate the possibility.
