Sued by Midland Funding in Alabama

[GoblinPunch]

I recently received a summons from small claims. It was a thick packet. It's for a debt that I guess has been around for years. I'm not really sure what to do next. Any advice would be helpful. Information about it below.

1. Who is the named plaintiff in the suit? Midland Funding LLC

2. What is the name of the law firm handling the suit? Moxley and Associates, LLC

3. How much are you being sued for? $800

4. Who is the original creditor? Synchrony Bank

5. How do you know you are being sued? I was served papers at home

6. How were you served? In person.

7. Was the service legal as required by your state? Yes.

8. What was your correspondence (if any) with the people suing you before you think you were being sued? I receved some mail every now and then but I never answered it. I got calls every now and then but I always hung up.

9. What state and county do you live in? Alabama, Montgomery County

10. When is the last time you paid on this account? (looking to establish if you are outside of the statute of limitations) According to the paperwork they sent, January 2015

11. When did you open the account (looking to establish what card agreement may be applicable)? I don't remember anything about this account but the earliest statement they sent me was from October 2014

12. What is the SOL on the debt? 3 years

13. What is the status of your case? Suit has been served.

14. Have you disputed the debt with the credit bureaus (both the original creditor and the collection agency?) No.

15. Did you request debt validation before the suit was filed? No.

16. How long do you have to respond to the suit? 

I have 14 days. No questionaire. Charges are as follows:

Midland is the successor to the original creditor. I made purchases using the card. I failed to make the proper payments. The card was charged off.

17. What evidence did they send with the summons? An affidavit? Statements from the OC? Contract? List anything else they attached as exhibits.

They sent a number of statements including a statement that reflects the charge off. A "Bill of Sale" from the original creditor. An affidavit of sale. a "Blanket Certificate of Conformity" from a notary. Another affidavit from a legal specialist repeating and verifying the information from the packet and stamped by a notary public.

[BV80]

@GoblinPunch

If you don't remember the account, check your bank records to make sure that you made payments on the account.  If it's not your account, you have a defense.

In the event it is your account, get a copy of the Synchrony Cardmember Agreement and read the arbitration section.  You need the agreement that was in effect when the account went into default.  If the last payment was made in 2014, that's probably the year of default.

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/credit-cards/agreements/?

Also, check out the following thread.

https://www.creditinfocenter.com/community/topic/329436-arbitration-overview-and-strategy-2018-most-up-to-date-info/

 

[BackFromTheDebt]

17 hours ago, GoblinPunch said:

I recently received a summons from small claims. It was a thick packet. It's for a debt that I guess has been around for years. I'm not really sure what to do next. Any advice would be helpful. Information about it below.

1. Who is the named plaintiff in the suit? Midland Funding LLC

2. What is the name of the law firm handling the suit? Moxley and Associates, LLC

3. How much are you being sued for? $800

4. Who is the original creditor? Synchrony Bank

5. How do you know you are being sued? I was served papers at home

6. How were you served? In person.

7. Was the service legal as required by your state? Yes.

8. What was your correspondence (if any) with the people suing you before you think you were being sued? I receved some mail every now and then but I never answered it. I got calls every now and then but I always hung up.

9. What state and county do you live in? Alabama, Montgomery County

10. When is the last time you paid on this account? (looking to establish if you are outside of the statute of limitations) According to the paperwork they sent, January 2015

11. When did you open the account (looking to establish what card agreement may be applicable)? I don't remember anything about this account but the earliest statement they sent me was from October 2014

12. What is the SOL on the debt? 3 years

13. What is the status of your case? Suit has been served.

14. Have you disputed the debt with the credit bureaus (both the original creditor and the collection agency?) No.

15. Did you request debt validation before the suit was filed? No.

16. How long do you have to respond to the suit? 

I have 14 days. No questionaire. Charges are as follows:

Midland is the successor to the original creditor. I made purchases using the card. I failed to make the proper payments. The card was charged off.

17. What evidence did they send with the summons? An affidavit? Statements from the OC? Contract? List anything else they attached as exhibits.

They sent a number of statements including a statement that reflects the charge off. A "Bill of Sale" from the original creditor. An affidavit of sale. a "Blanket Certificate of Conformity" from a notary. Another affidavit from a legal specialist repeating and verifying the information from the packet and stamped by a notary public.

WHAT???????????????????????????????????

Am I missing something here?  Please correct me if any of what I write below is incorrect.

 

This says the last payment was January 2015, according to the Plaintiff's records.  

This says the SOL is 3 years.

If both of those are correct, the SOL ended no later than the end of February 2018.  That means this is past the SOL.

If that is correct, then answer the suit with the affirmative defense that this is past the SOL date.  File a MTD.

Then, go find a consumer lawyer to sue them for filing suit outside the SOL date.  This could be a few thousand in legal fees for the attorney, and a few hundred up to $1000 for you. 

[Pericles]

Apparently the 3 year SOL in Alabama is for suits brought under an open account cause of action.

But debt buyers sue in Alabama based on account stated or breach of contract, which have a 6 year SOL.

“Is the statute of limitations in Alabama on a credit card lawsuit 3 years?”

[BV80]

21 minutes ago, BackFromTheDebt said:

WHAT???????????????????????????????????

Am I missing something here?  Please correct me if any of what I write below is incorrect.

 

This says the last payment was January 2015, according to the Plaintiff's records.  

This says the SOL is 3 years.

If both of those are correct, the SOL ended no later than the end of February 2018.  That means this is past the SOL.

If that is correct, then answer the suit with the affirmative defense that this is past the SOL date.  File a MTD.

Then, go find a consumer lawyer to sue them for filing suit outside the SOL date.  This could be a few thousand in legal fees for the attorney, and a few hundred up to $1000 for you. 

Cook v. Midland Funding, LLC  (AL Court of Civil Appeals, 2016)

A six-year statute of limitations is applied to claims on an account stated and for actions based on a contract. See § 6-2-34(5) and (9), Ala.Code 1975.

[GoblinPunch]

Yeah I was looking into the SOL before I came here since there seemed to be some discrepancies. Seems like 6 years is indeed the time period. 

[BackFromTheDebt]

2 hours ago, BV80 said:

Cook v. Midland Funding, LLC  (AL Court of Civil Appeals, 2016)

A six-year statute of limitations is applied to claims on an account stated and for actions based on a contract. See § 6-2-34(5) and (9), Ala.Code 1975.

OK, then I was missing something, or, to be more precise, the OP was missing something.  Good catch @BV80

 

In that case, @GoblinPunch  you need to either get this into arbitration, or else show them something that this is NOT your account, such as bank records, a police report, etc.  

 

Or, both.