Received a summons for small claims today, but am moving out of state in a week - HELP!!

[Anonymous]

I received a summons in the mail today regarding a debt that is due to expire on its SOL in Aug of 2011.  The answer date is 4/29/11, but i just found out that my husband who is the sole income provider (I am a stay at home mom) is being transferred to NC from our curent state of CT.  How should I proceed and answer this?  Obviously I will not be travelling back and forth to make court appearances, especially with young children.

Please help!

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I received a summons in the mail today regarding a debt that is due to expire on its SOL in Aug of 2011.  The answer date is 4/29/11, but i just found out that my husband who is the sole income provider (I am a stay at home mom) is being transferred to NC from our curent state of CT.  How should I proceed and answer this?  Obviously I will not be travelling back and forth to make court appearances, especially with young children.

Please help!

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Most of the time a summons has to be served personally.  I would check with the court to make sure there is actually a suit filed against you.

In any event, if there is a lawsuit against you and you do not appear, there is virtually a 100% chance they will obtain a default judgment against you and then you will have to deal with the effects of not only a judgment on your credit reports, but also the possibility of wage garnishment and / or having your bank accounts attached.  Failure to answer a summons is almost never a good idea.

I would try and find a local attorney who can represent you.  Failing that, answering a summons & complaint is relatively easy and there may even be a model answer on your state court's website or you may be able to seek advice from the court clerk.  Clerks in small claims court are generally very helpful.  There is always the possibility that you can seek a delay in order to better prepare.  Again, the court clerk would probably be able to guide you.

Good luck! 

[Anonymous]

The suit is filed and I have been served, as stated previously.  I have papers in front of me to answer.  In CT you are not required to be physically served by someone, they can serve you via mail.  I understand that failure to appear results in a default judgement which is why I am asking how I should be answering this summons in light of my move from this state to another almost 1000 miles away.  I cannot appear in court here regardless as I won't be living here.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

The suit is filed and I have been served, as stated previously.  I have papers in front of me to answer.  In CT you are not required to be physically served by someone, they can serve you via mail.  I understand that failure to appear results in a default judgement which is why I am asking how I should be answering this summons in light of my move from this state to another almost 1000 miles away.  I cannot appear in court here regardless as I won't be living here.

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It must be a small claims court thing, because in other courts in CT personal service is generally required.

If the summons & complaint states you must file an answer by a certain date, then you would file an "Answer" basically denying the allegations.  If, however, it tells you that you must appear on a certain date then you would basically have two choices:  1) appear or 2) not appear and write a letter and tell them why you cannot appear.

If you choose #2, prepare for a default judgment because there's nothing else to do.