carrier00 Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 I am trying to settle a judgment against me from '01. It is scheduled to be on my CR until '09. I am buying a house, and the lender said this needs to be settled before I can close (mid March). It is from an apartment complex I used to live at for $1500. The JC has been out of business for a while. The apartment was part of a 3-flat that was sold off for back taxes soon after I moved out ('01). Can I have this judgment vacated because of this? I wouldn't mind settling this debt, I just have no idea who to pay. I have tried contacting the current owners and have gotten the run around. Apparently no one wants my money, or at least take responsibility for it. What steps should I take? Thanks! This forum has been so helpful to me.BTW, I am in IL if it helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foreclosureparalegal Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 See if you can find a "starving" and helpful law school student to help you with this and it gives them some "experience".Some law schools have legal clinics, too. And/Or Post on Craigslist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin3344 Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 Can I have this judgment vacated because of this?Probably not. Of course you can file a motion and send a copy to the plaintiff in the lawsuit papers. This may or may not be the apartment complex. Make sure you read the rules of civil procedure (RCP) for your locale to make sure you do this correctly. I just have no idea who to pay.You can pay the court and then get a Satisfaction of Judgment. Just walk up to the clerks desk and say you want to pay a judgment. You don't have to locate the plaintiff.Remember, judgments accrue interest while they are outstanding so it's possible this could be more than $1,500 if it was entered in 2001. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foreclosureparalegal Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 If you file a motion to vacate and you can't find them for service (send to the last known address and it comes back undeliverable) and/or they do not answer, then (in my experience) you win by default.Of course, the short easy way is to pay the money and get a satisfaction of judgment and it's still on your credit for a time, too. The other way, you can (probably) remove from your credit file if it's showing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justincase Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 I am trying to settle a judgment against me from '01. It is scheduled to be on my CR until '09. I am buying a house, and the lender said this needs to be settled before I can close (mid March). It is from an apartment complex I used to live at for $1500. The JC has been out of business for a while. The apartment was part of a 3-flat that was sold off for back taxes soon after I moved out ('01). Can I have this judgment vacated because of this? I wouldn't mind settling this debt, I just have no idea who to pay. I have tried contacting the current owners and have gotten the run around. Apparently no one wants my money, or at least take responsibility for it. What steps should I take? Thanks! This forum has been so helpful to me.BTW, I am in IL if it helpsSomeone correct me if I'm wrong, if you pay it will just be changed to satisfied and I think it reports seven years from the date of satisfaction meaning you may re-start the clock. Some States only allow you a 2 year window to file motion from the day the judgement was granted. You may be stuck check your state laws. Is it reporting to all 3 CRA's? I would try disputing by it being so old it may not be in the system or box filed. If they can't verify then the CRA's have to delete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carrier00 Posted January 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 The credit reporting agencies have "verified" this information. I am thinking the cheapest way to get rid of it is to file a motion to vacate and be unable to find them. I would rather put the time, rather than the money into this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carrier00 Posted January 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 I forgot to add that I have concerns about paying to courts to satisfy a judgment to company that no longer exists. Do I get the money back if they can't find who is entitled to it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flacorps Posted January 22, 2008 Report Share Posted January 22, 2008 A lot of this stuff is state law dependent. Some states do not have a registry of the court into which a judgment may be paid ... and for those that do, typically there's no discount that the debtor can negotiate. Where there is no registry, typically there will be some sort of action the judgment debtor can file to resolve the judgment. It may or may not result in the judgment being vacated if the creditor can't be found. Also, if you pay the registry and the creditor can't be found, typically the monies will go into the state's unclaimed fund at some point. If the owner of the complex was a company, that company may still exist. Check the Secretary of State's records. If it was an individual, find the individual. There are online services that will do this for you. If the company no longer exists, everything it owned either went to the individual who owned it in proportion to their stock holdings, or it went to a trustee in bankruptcy. There are public records that will tell you what happened. BKs can be checked on Pacer. The easiest starting point may be the lawyer who obtained the judgment for the other side. The sale of the property for taxes would not affect the judgment.You'll have to check IL law to know whether and on what grounds the judgment might be vacated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recovering Attorney Posted January 22, 2008 Report Share Posted January 22, 2008 Go to teh courthouse, find ot who teh JC's lawyer was. Contact them with a solid offer and the lure of cash righ taway. Let them worry about who to give the money to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justincase Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 The credit reporting agencies have "verified" this information. I am thinking the cheapest way to get rid of it is to file a motion to vacate and be unable to find them. I would rather put the time, rather than the money into this.As I posted previously you need to check your state laws. Some states impose a sol on filing a motion to dismiss and vacate, it usually starts from the date that the judgement was granted. I know here in Maryland you have two years to do so, after that you are pretty much dead in the water. I agree with Recovering to a point, go to court house and get copy of the entire file. Go through it with a fine tooth comb. I was in a similar situation and was able to have judgement dismissed and vacated. I'll post the link for you. I don't agree to giving anyone any money until you get your hands on the case files. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justincase Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Here is that link http://www.debt-consolidation-credit-repair-service.com/forums/showthread.php?t=267652 ,had I not gotten a copy of the file I would have been sh*t out of luck. The only way I would agree to let my money leave my hand is if the attorney who got judgement agree to file motion to court to have dismissed and vacated. If they say no, then I would not pay them anything, it's only got 11 more months until it drops off of your reports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts