Expert: Apex Credit Services, LLC - 5/13/2008

Question
My wife received a summons to appear in court on May 28th of this year regarding a bad debt Unifund Partners picked up from a Chase Manhattan account she defaulted on.  The card was picked up five years ago and usage discontinued within a matter of months because of non-payment.  

Details of debt:

Account Opened - 3/2003
Account Closed - 2/2006
Account Paid - 6/2005

Updated 9/2007

Credit Limit - $2,500
High Bal - $4,779

Source: TransUnion Credit Report 5/13/08

Unifund has the following listing on my wife's credit report:

Opened 9/2007
Closed 10/2007
Updated 3/2008

Original balance is stated as $4,779
They state the current balance is $5,281

Yet I am being sued for $5,222.74 + court costs.  

I've been told they can't legally add fees and interest until after a judgment has been issued.

The only evidence they provided was an "affidavit of indebtedness" that doesn't denote when the Chase account was established, proof it was taken out, etc.  I've been told it is the legal equivalent of "toilet paper" and is simply hearsay.

I can't afford thousands of dollars in legal aid, and I don't know if I can contact an attorney to start the bankruptcy process to halt this or not.  Searches for Unifund Partners has pulled up some disturbing information - It appears that they don't "play fair" and they will make life "interesting".

Answer
Sam:

   Much of what you're saying is correct however, we cannot advise you with much detail insofar as the answers would be jurisdictional specific.

   We can say that Unifund typically files these Complaints with only affidavits.  They do not comply with most state code.  In addition, the addition of interest is likely not permitted under their assignment agreements.

            Apex Credit Services, LLC