srulie Posted October 15, 2004 Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 Hi im located in NYC.My wife had a judgement placed aginst her in 1997 from first card fcc national bank. She was never personally served and I don't belive she ever signed any certified letters i think they may have tapped a paper to her front door. I was under the impression that they could not freeze an account if it was joinly owned but I guess I was wrong.A few weeks ago they froze my accounts in several banks. My bank manager told me they can only have a hold on twice the amont of the original judgement amount. I called them up and asked them to release my checking account because they have thier interest secure with my savings account. The did not want to comply after threatening them with a lawsuit they said they would and they did. At that time I explained that my wife had alot of debts that I settled a few years back and that this debt may have already been settled with another agency. I asked them to please give me documentation proving that this money is owed. Several weeks have passed and I spoke to them today they told me that they do not have supporting documentation since the debt is so old and can just supply me with an account number date and amount. I asked them how much they would want to settle the matter she answered the original amount was $2800 the judment is for $3200 and the total is now at $5600 (all approximations) She went on to explain that they usually will accept 85% of the 5600. I told her that my wife was never served anything and that I could probably get this vacated and they have a pretty weak case if there is no supporting documentation so how much will she really settle for? She answered that she agreed but perhaps the paperwork will still turn up.Either way she said if I am interested to make an offer and if so how much am I willing to pay and she will present it to the bank with no promises.I told her that I will call my lawyer and get back to her. Now What? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Methuss Posted October 15, 2004 Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 Well first, get a copy of her credit report. If there really is a judgment, then it will be listed there under the public records section. Then call the court where the judgment was issued. There's a pretty good chance it happened in a court without proper jurisdiction (you can only be sued where the contract was signed or where you lived at the time of the court action). The process paperwork should also be available from the courthouse so you can see where it was delivered to and how.Once you have all that you will be in a better position to deal with trying to vacate. One last note, even though this is a judgment, the debt collector is REQUIRED to provide you with a copy of the judgment upon demand. If they admit they don't have a copy of the judgment and froze your accounts, they (and the bank) could be in very big trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
srulie Posted October 15, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 They have a copy of the judgement but no paperwork or details on the original debt except an account number and an amount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadynRed Posted October 15, 2004 Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 At this point, 7 years later, it makes no difference whether or not they have the original account info, they have the JUDGMENT and that is ALL they need to collect. Its also unlikely that you'll get a 7 year old judgment vacated, NY gives you only ONE YEAR to contest a judgment. Forget attacking service too. "nail and mail" service is LEGAL in NY, so if they DID tape it to her door, or even throw it AT her door, its considered valid service.Your options now are to negotiate with the judgment holders to settle it. If you have paperwork proving the account was settled BEFORE the judgment went thru, then you need to produce it. THAT kind of evidence just might be enough to appeal the judgment and get you a hearing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bee Posted October 16, 2004 Report Share Posted October 16, 2004 Hi, first time post, hope I am doing this correctly. I was/am in a similiar situation. I had a default judgment entered against me by a CA for a CC debt in 2001. The first time I found out about it was around 2 yrs later (spring 2004) when they levied (froze) my bank account. That was not fun. I was, however, able to get the judgment vacated (pro-se) before the CA received any funds from my account and it was over two years after the default judgment was filed with the court. I think there is hope to get an older default judgment vacated if you have valid enough reasons and a willing judge. I'm also in NY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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