Thought I was out...pulled back in again...

[blacksurfer]

I was able to get my lawsuit from Sherman Aqc. dismissed without prejudice, but another vulture is at the door. This time it is Citibank, coming after my wife. She was served with the summons on June 9th and has 30 days to answer. I have my handy dandy "How to Sue in California" that is an excellent book on Civil torts and contracts case.

My goal is to string this out to October and maybe file BK if I can't get this dismissed or settled. I will have my wife file for an extension to answer the complaint ,asking for an additional 20 days. She will then answer the summons near the end of that 20 days and counter sue for three violations, failure to report as dispute her credit reports, failure to cease telephone collection calls after receiving "cease and desist" letter via CCCR, and for filing a lawsuit when proper validation was requested and not received. CitiBank is the OC and the credit card is not pass the SOL.

BS

[admin]

First, congrats on beating Sherman. They are tough.

One other thing, don't file a BK. It's better to just let things go to collection. What are the circumstances? How much do you owe. When was the last time you paid, etc.

[Xanathos]

Is the vulture Citibanc, or did Citi hire a vulture? Big difference there, and really molds any potential counterclaims you might have.

BTW...love the thread title...having serious withdrawls of that atm . They'd better not whack Silvio...

[hoapres]

You most likely are sued in the limited jurisdiction division of superior court. You should check your local county court rules. I suspect that at the initial CMC - case management conference that the matter will be set for trial within 60 days.

If you are being sued by Citibank directly and the attorney has it's act together then you can expect a motion for summary judgment to be filed against you. The motion for summary judgment will require at least 75 days notice.

[blacksurfer]

The debt was for 7K, it's been charged off for about 2 years and the interest accrued 6K in two years! Bringing the total due to 13K. Yes, it's the Civil Limited in Superior Court, with a Case Mgmt Review set for Nov 11, 2005. BK will be my last resort, depending if Sherman ever refile or if Citi won't settle for 50% of the original amount. BTW, Citi never sold the loan to a debt buyer. These are attorneys hired by CitiBank. (I think).

BTW, I highly recommend this book: Sue in California Without a Lawyer

Even if you're not in Cali, it's a good general reference, with copies of how to ask for an extension on pleading paper and a very important chapter on how to answer a Motion for Summary Judgement. That's where most pro per defendants lose, according to the author, a judge.

[hoapres]

1. You should check with the court clerk as most likely Nov. 11 being veterans day is a court holiday. It is quite likely that the CMC hearing will not be held on veterans day.

2. The bankruptcy rules change in Oct. 2005. If bankruptcy is a serious option then you probably don't want to wait until after the CMC hearing. You should consult a bankruptcy attorney for legal advice.

3. While the Nolo Press Book, Sue in California without a lawyer, is worth consulting, even if you are not in California the section on motion for summary judgment is well detailed, the Nolo Press Book Represent yourself in Court is another mandatory read. While the author of Sue in California without a lawyer is correct that many pro se litigants lose motion for summary judgments on the grounds of inadequate response, it should be pointed out that for routine debt collection cases with the Plaintiff, most likely the OC, having "it's act together" then the motion for summary judgment will most likely be granted.

[blacksurfer]

Thanks Hoapres,

The Case Mgmt Review is non-appearance. We just fill out a form CM-110 that must be filed at least 15 days before the date. Yes, I agree it's hard to win a Summary Judgement motion. This new BK law, will put some urgency into offering a settlement before Oct 15th.

[hoapres]

Read your court rules carefully, while it is possible that the case management review is a non-appearance and you are correct that the case management statement needs to be filled out 15 days before the CMC hearing, usually the judge expects all parties to attend the CMC hearing to discuss the case status.

If your CMC hearing is trully a non-appearance in your county for a limited jurisdiction case then I expect a trial date to be set.

[ghacorp]

BS didn't mention whom the recipient of the DV, C&D notices was, however unless those were sent to a collection agency there would be no violation of counterclaims with the possible exception of not reporting the account in dispute if beyond a reasonable period of time to report correctly which could be at least sixty days. Sending DV or CD requests to Citibank greatly increases the probability they will file suit for recovery. Citibank profiles customers based on their ability to pay and criteria used includes income and assets. Counterclaims are very hard to prove and very few debtors are ever awarded damages while the creditor being a well oiled litigation machine typically scores a win. Oftentimes Citibank will settle for a reduced amount. However, if you have other problems consider going the bankruptcy route before October 17.