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Please keep in mind the three case stories below are abbreviated versions of what occurred and do not include all the steps I went through. They are merely to give
you an idea of what is possible with some research and will to defend yourself.
Case #1 - $13,500 (Midland Capital)
This was the easiest case to win. The plaintiff dropped the case right after the first pre-trial and after I had sent my interrogatories.
The bottom line is they couldn't produce any of the documentation I requested in my interogatories and they knew it so they just dropped the case. Why waste time
and effort on me when 95% of people don't even fight them. Thats the key in all of this. If your debt is old and has been sold one or more times there is a good
chance you can win.
Case #2 - $3,900 (Capital One)
This particular debt according to my credit report was time barred or in other words past the statute of limitations (Explained in the tips and FAQ section below).
Because I thought the debt was time barred I didn't defend this case as vigourously as my other two which was a mistake
but thankfully it worked out in the end. The plaintiff
claimed to have proof that the date of last payment was different from what was listed on my credit report.
It was a long hard battle on this case, looking back I think they were just hoping I would eventually miss a court date because I think I ended up having to go to court like 6 times for this one case.
Anyways at one point I had just about given up hope when the plaintiff filed a motion for judgement against me saying that my time barred argument was incorrect and they had the documentation to back it up. They had sent me a copy of the motion and
it said the evidence was attached in appendix A but no such evidence was attached. I assumed they just forgot to attach it to the copy they sent me so I went to court the day of the motion expecting
to loose (ALWAYS SHOW UP FOR COURT. THE CREDITORS LOVE WHEN YOU MISS COURT BECAUSE THEY WIN BY DEFAULT). Much to my surprise the attorney didn't have the documentation they claimed to have and they
simply told the judge they were taking the motion off the list. I was a bit annoyed as I was going to be late for work again. Still I thought they must have it and since I hadn't mounted another defense I told the attorney their representing
the plaintiff that if they could provide me the evidence and fax it or mail it to me I would settle the case. Time went by and I never got anything in the mail or via fax? My actual trial date was only 3 weeks away so I called the plaintiff's
attorney and said can you fax me the documentation showing my last payment was when you say? Much to my astonishment the attorney said we havn't recieved that documentation yet. I told him if he got it before the trial let me know and I will settle
the case. Weeks went by and still nothing. I was the day before my trial when I received a phone call from the plaintiffs attorney saying they would dismiss the case and would call the court. I forget what b.s. reason he said but I knew the truth, they never got the documentation!
Once again if your debt is old and has been sold chances are they just can't produce the documentation they need to! However I still went to court the next day and checked with the clerk and indeed the case had been dismissed. I jsut wanted to make sure they were not trying to trick
me into not showing up for my trial.
Case #3 - $15,500 (Velocity Investments)
This was by far the most difficult case. The original creditor was Bank of America and let me tell you they keep excellent records. I had requested the usual documents in my interrogatories and was hoping that
just like Midland Capital they would give up knowing they couldn't get them. However, much to my horror they had it all (signed contract, copy of statements, etc) thanks to BofA record keeping. I really thought I was doomed but wasn't
willing to give up just yet. I even spent the money to consult an attorney to look over everything and see if I had any reasonable defense left. The attorney pretty much told me I had no defense and quite frankly it was a waste of money.
I was just about to give up but while I was looking through the packet of documents they sent me it occured to me they didn't really answer one important question posed in my interrogatories and that was proof that they owned the debt.
Indeed there was an official looking document saying they had purchased the debt from Bank of America, however it was no more proof than if I had typed up something on my computer saying I had bought my debt from Bank of America. So in a
last ditch effort I sent a second round of interrogatories to the plaintiff's attorney asking for clarification and proof that they owned the debt and had the right to collect it (After all you wouldn't buy a car without the title would you? I wanted to see the title!).
I figured out exactly how to ask the question by consulting the attorny online and was it ever worth the 30 dollars because I ended up winning my case.
I went to my first pre-trial
and told the judge that the plaintiff had not answered the question posed in my second set of interrogatories. He ordered the plaintiff to answer within 30 days and scheduled a second pre-trial date. I showed up for my second pre-trial
and believe it or not the plaintiff didn't show up! I won by default! Determination and 30 bucks saved me over 15 thousand dollars.
Some tips when defending yourself.
--Respond to the summons/complaint, don't ignore it. In all the times I went to court I was amazed at how many people just never showed up and
the creditors were able to have default judgements entered against them. I would have to say it was between 90% and 95% of defendents didn't show.
--Always show up for our Court Date!
-- In correspondence with the court add "Appearing Pro Se" (defending yourself) by the signature line.
This is only my opinion but I think at least some courts will cut you a little slack
if your document isn't in perfect format. It couldn't hurt anyway.
Example:
Respectfully Submitted
John Smith
Appearing Pro Se
--Get a copy of your credit report. You need to know what is on it and what you are up against.
Especially when it comes to the statute of limitations. Creditors and debt collectors have a
limited time window in which to sue debtors for nonpayment of credit card bills. That limit
is set by a state's statute of limitations. Anyone with a credit card should know their state's statute.
Statute of Limitations on Credit Cards by State.
--Do your discovery (interrogatories - this is just questions you get to ask the plaintiff) and force the collection agency/plaintiff to produce the documentation and prove they own the debt.
--Send all correspondence to the court and the plaintiff via certified mail so you have documentation to prove you indeed mailed it.
Whenever communicating with the court or the plaintiff's attorney send a copy of the correspondence to both. For example when you
send your interrogatories to the plaintiff also send a copy to the court, usually the clerk.
--If the other side ever fails to show up at one of your court dates ask the court to dismiss the case.
--If you are ever offered a dismissal make sure it is a dismissal with prejudice. This means they can't re-open the case.
