I think that you have only a very slim chance of avoiding a judgment.
Honestly, at the point that you do not have the money to pay in advance of your court date, and have not paid money to them (the CA's) during the period that you've been in default, the real issue is the money you owe, not why you owe.
You should appear in court. I know this is a traumatic experience for you, but in terms of the court system, these are very easy cases that are done with basically no argument that requires a lawyer. The lawyer for the other side will be there, and you may feel more comfortable with a lawyer, but I know that if you hire one and you go to court with them, you'll be astonished at how little work they actually did for you, especially compared to the outcome. Plus, you need that money.
Once you have a judgment, you'll have to set up a payment plan. If you don't, they will garnish you and/or shut down all of your accounts (seizing the assets) until you get in touch with them. When you go to court, one of the things to talk to the judge about will be your previous offers for a payment plan and your current difficulties. That's where why you can't pay is important--the court can put you on a payment plan (usually).
These boards have stories about people getting out of judgments: plaintiff's attorney does not show up to court; plaintiff's attorney doesn't bring the proper documentation to show you owe the debt, etc. Possible to get lucky. However, at the point that you want to argue to the judge that you made offers to settle/payment plan, you should not first argue that it's not your debt.
Certainly argue to the judge that you are not a deadbeat, that you made offers that they rejected, that you want to pay this debt--hopefully in the absence of a judgment. Also, be sure to argue about the actual amount, you might be able to get some downward movement on the total amount. If you don't go to court, the judgment will be for the full amount + attorney fees + court costs.
At this point, the only negotiation you can offer is to try to pay this down in advance of the court date, and the CA would be within its rights to reject partial payments that it did not agree to receive.
If you think that maybe you just need a little longer to get a full payment together, call the court and ask what their process for a continuance. Usually, only the plaintiff can ask for it. If that's the case, call the plaintiff's attorney and see if they'll delay the court date. A family member got an August court date delayed because of an out-of-state family wedding, and the next available was in October. You might be able to get some extra time if you ask the court or convince the plaintiff to ask the court.
Hang in there & good luck.
Edited to add: the summons is not yet on your credit report. It goes on your credit report if it becomes a judgment. At this point, it's only been alleged that you haven't paid the debt. Also, check in the Credit Rebuilding Section (maybe this should be moved??). I guess this is a car loan, but more info is in that section . . .
Message Edited by jesslyn on
09-29-2008 12:37 PM
