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Hello, and thank you for taking the time to look at this. On July second I was served papers through Forster and Garbus regarding an old student loan debt from 2003. I've feverishly researched this issue, and I've prepared an answer to be delivered ASAP. I'm attaching a censored version of both the summons and the document with the intention of getting them having some good people here proof read them to ensure I'm not missing anything. On that note, I do have a raw question before I get to answering the standardized questions. Specifically, I'm talking about an entry on their complaint form that says : "2nd cause/action: Plaintiff stated an account to be defendant without objection. That there is now due plaintiff from defendant(s) the amount set forth in the complain, no part of which has been paid although duly demanded." Isnt this a violation of some rule? I do have the old letters they said making claims that if I "dont respond the debt is assumed valid"; and I was told in passing that this violates some law; but I'm unsure of what can be done. Also, as it's not written as an official numbered complaint, I'm unsure if I should address this on my written answer. I'm also not entirely sure how I get the answer to the plaintiff. Resources on NYC's legal aid site mention having to involve a notary and having a third party uninvolved in the case deliver the answer, while the summons itself states I need to serve a copy of my answer directly to the plaintiff's attorney, which is located about 3 hours from me. Also, the index number on the summons handed to me is a 6 digit number, but a reminder from my local courthouse has the same index number only with a slash and an additional two numbers at the end. Sorry for all that, here are the template questions. 1. Who is the named plaintiff in the suit? Jefferson Capital Systems LLC. 2. What is the name of the law firm handling the suit? (should be listed at the top of the complaint.) Forster and Garbus LLP 3. How much are you being sued for? $31,829.81 4. Who is the original creditor? (if not the Plaintiff) SLM Education credit finance C. 5. How do you know you are being sued? (You were served, right?) I was served on July 2nd, 3:00pm. 6. How were you served? (Mail, In person, Notice on door) In person 7. Was the service legal as required by your state? Yes. Process Service Requirements by State - Summons Complaint 8. What was your correspondence (if any) with the people suing you before you think you were being sued? Nothing. 9. What state and county do you live in? Richmond, New York 10. When is the last time you paid on this account? (looking to establish if you are outside of the statute of limitations) January 2012 11. What is the SOL on the debt? To find out: 6 Years. Statute of Limitations on Debts 12. What is the status of your case? Suit served? Motions filed? You can find this by a) calling the court or looking it up online (many states have this information posted - when you find the online court site, search by case number or your name). Suit served. 13. Have you disputed the debt with the credit bureaus (both the original creditor and the collection agency?) No 14. Did you request debt validation before the suit was filed? Note: if you haven't sent a debt validation request, don't bother doing this now - it's too late. No 15. How long do you have to respond to the suit? (This should be in your paperwork). If you don't respond to the lawsuit notice you will lose automatically. In 99% of the cases, they will require you to answer the summons, and each point they are claiming. We need to know what the "charges" are. Please post what they are claiming. Did you receive an interrogatory (questionnaire) regarding the lawsuit? 20 days. The summons was handed to me on July 2nd, so this Friday. Here is an example of what the summons/complaint may look like: Sued by a Debt Collector - Learn How to Fight Debt Lawsuits 16. What evidence did they send with the summons? An affidavit? Statements from the OC? Contract? List anything else they attached as exhibits. The summons states "Upon information and belief of a promissory note." 17. Read this article: Sued by a Debt Collector - Learn How to Fight Debt Lawsuits I'll be watching this thread closely, so please feel free to ask any questions in the event I missed some details.