chava2002 Posted March 4, 2005 Report Share Posted March 4, 2005 I received a Summons from the State of the Arkansas. I do not live in Arkansas (live in Texas) nor did I live there when I had the credit card. I stopped paying the credit card and then moved to Arkansas for about a year and have been back in Texas for atleast 9 months. The debt is approximately 2.5 years old (since last payment).Can I get this case dismissed? What do I do? Should I get an attorney?Thanks!!This is what the Summons states:****COMES Plaintiff, by and through its attorneys, XXXX P.L.L.C., and for its complaint against the Defendant,, states:1.) Plaintiff is an Ohio corporation with its principal place of business located in XXXX.2.) The Court has subject matter and personal jurisdiction in this case and venue is proper in the county3.) Defendant received a credit card from Citibank, with account number XXXX Defendant made various charges on this card, leaving an outstanding balance. Plaintiff is the assinee of this account.4.) That said account is now past due and remains unpaid despite the demands of Plaintiff.5.) As shown by the attached affidavit the balance due from the Defendant after applying all payments, credits, or other states is $5191.68, plus interest accrued in the amount of $2,703.01 as of the date this complaint was prepared for a total amount due of $7,894.69. In addition, Plaintiff seeks costs, pre-judgment interest until the date of judgment at the contract rate of interest, attorney fees, and post judgment interest at the maximum rate allowed by law.WHEREFORE, Plaintiff prays for a judgment against the Defendant in the amount $5,191.68, for its cost incurred in this matter, pre-judgment interest until the date of judgment at the contract rate of interest, for reasonable attorney's fee, and for all other people and legal relief to which it may be entitled.*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c m chase Posted March 4, 2005 Report Share Posted March 4, 2005 Yes, you can have the case dismissed. They can't sue you in a county you don't live in.Anyone have a copy of a motion to dismiss for chava? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
divemedic Posted March 4, 2005 Report Share Posted March 4, 2005 Also, make sure you get copies of everything they sent, and as soon as you file for dismissal, DV them. That way if they refile in the correct venue, you are better prepared Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted March 4, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2005 Could the same Law Firm file in the right county? Would the collector have to hire a new attorney? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broke Chick Posted March 5, 2005 Report Share Posted March 5, 2005 Chava:It depends on wheter the firm has an attorney or attorneys on staff who are admitted to the TX Bar. If they do, they will likely keep it in house. If not, they will have to hire a TX firm to do their dirty work! If they DO have to hire attorneys in TX, the law firm, unless the creditor wants to do so, WILL NOT go to the trouble of hiring outside counsel in order to refile the case in TX. (This is very expensive.) Therefore, you may find yourself, if the current firm does not have any attorneys licensed in TX, "off-the-hook"...at least for now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted March 5, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2005 Anybody have a copy of the motion to dismiss?THANKS FOR YOUR HELP!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KentWA Posted March 5, 2005 Report Share Posted March 5, 2005 Also, Filing in the wrong county is an FDCPA violation. DV them as soon as the case is dismissed and they can not file again without causing another FDCPA violation as they can not file a court case without first answering your DV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocDon Posted March 5, 2005 Report Share Posted March 5, 2005 Anybody have a copy of the motion to dismiss?THANKS FOR YOUR HELP!!!It's not a letter. It's a series of forms you need to get from the court. The court clerk will be able to give you everything you need (except legal advice). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted March 6, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 6, 2005 Thank you for your advice!The summons caught me off guard. It was not fun telling my newlywed wife (1 month) that I was being sued. I guess I'm paying for my college mistakes now.I have learned a lot on this message board. I will apply the knowledge as I try to settle different accounts. One thing for sure, I am going to keep excellent records from this point on. I will probably even buy a phone recorder. THANKS AGAIN!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocDon Posted March 6, 2005 Report Share Posted March 6, 2005 Congratulations on your nuptials! If it's any conciliation at this point, we've been so well trained to poop when we hear lawsuit, that Pavlov would be proud. The lawsuit is nothing more than a necessary part of the judicial process.Just because you're being sued, doens't mean you're guilty of, or liable for anything. Companies sue each other every day - it's become such a part of 'normal' business that companies took to hiring their own in-house counsel. However, as with everything else that's good for the big guys it's still taboo for us....Even better is the "affidavit of debt" they love to attach. The affidavit is not really factual evidence if you look at it - it's an employee of the OC holding up their hand and saying, "I swear this is what our computers show under penalty of perjury". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted March 12, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2005 I tried calling the court but they weren't very helpful. I thought I should file both answer and a motion to dismiss.This is what I have for the answer.*********ANSWERDefendant answers the complaint as follows:Paragraph 1: Defendant is without sufficient information and leaves Plaintiff to his proof. Paragraph 2: Defendant DENIES the statements contained in paragraph.Paragraph 3: Defendant is without sufficient information and leaves Plaintiff to his proof.Paragraph 4: Defendant is without sufficient information and leaves Plaintiff to his proof.Paragraph 5: Defendant is without sufficient information and leaves Plaintiff to his proof.II AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSESDefendant(s) other defenses are: - County is wrong venue - Plaintiff’s failure to comply with applicable states or federal law - Have not been provided with sufficient information to know whether this is my debt.******Anything else you recommend? The account is within SOL. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted March 12, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2005 I tried calling the court but they weren't very helpful. I thought I should file both answer and a motion to dismiss.This is what I have for the answer.*********ANSWERDefendant answers the complaint as follows:Paragraph 1: Defendant is without sufficient information and leaves Plaintiff to his proof. Paragraph 2: Defendant DENIES the statements contained in paragraph.Paragraph 3: Defendant is without sufficient information and leaves Plaintiff to his proof.Paragraph 4: Defendant is without sufficient information and leaves Plaintiff to his proof.Paragraph 5: Defendant is without sufficient information and leaves Plaintiff to his proof.II AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSESDefendant(s) other defenses are: - County is wrong venue - Plaintiff’s failure to comply with applicable states or federal law - Have not been provided with sufficient information to know whether this is my debt.******Anything else you recommend? The account is within SOL. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted March 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2005 Does this sound good?thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocDon Posted March 14, 2005 Report Share Posted March 14, 2005 The court clerk cannot give legal advice. I find it hard to believe they didn't at least tell you what forms you needed to use.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted March 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2005 I asked them for forms but lady said that there was nothing available. Pretty much just write a letter to the judge is what she said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocDon Posted March 14, 2005 Report Share Posted March 14, 2005 Well then, they must do things a lot differently down there where you're at to be able to get a case dismissed by sending the judge a Hallmark card... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted April 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 13, 2005 I called a second time and finally got an answer that made sense. Either way I filed the ANSWER and a MOTION TO DISMISS. The clerk did say that the judge will typically deny the motion until there is a hearing. The Plaintiff has not filed a hearing as of yet. Besides, the judge has two big cases that will probably take months, which means he won't be available for a few months. On the other side of the border....TEXAS. I contacted an attorney and he has already submitted the paperwork to file a lawsuit against XXXX for their actions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin Posted April 13, 2005 Report Share Posted April 13, 2005 Good going, way to stay with it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted April 26, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 26, 2005 They offered to settle for $500. WOW!!!They must be smoking something over there... I just laughed and rejected the offer without hesitating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chava2002 Posted June 4, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 4, 2005 I can't disclose the details but let's just say they won't be bothering me anymore. They violated the law and had to pay the price for their actions.A BIG THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY!!!! I knew I had a strong case going into this thanks to the information on this board. I just let the lawyer take care of everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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