Expert: Creditwrench - 5/8/2008

Question
Today, at 4:00pm, my husband received a call from a attorney with B of America regarding our CC debt that we have not been able to pay on for several months.  We have not received any notice from BofA, or a collection agency, indicating that they were pursuing a suit, and the attorney told my husband that if we did not pay $4000 by Friday (today is Wednesday), that we would be sued.  We did not receive any prior notice that they were potentially going to sue us, nor were any other options offered.  Am I nuts, is this odd, or do we really have to find a way to come up with $4000 in a day and a half?

Answer
If you can't or don't want to come up with 4 grand by Friday then I suppose a lawsuit is inevitable.

So why not get started with your defense now before he takes you to court. Here is how you do it. Send the lawyer a validation demand/denial letter by certified mail, return receipt requested. Then if he files a lawsuit without sending you the demanded validation you can file a federal lawsuit on him for illegal continued collection activity. That will put a big hitch in his git-along.

Furthermore, he has now contacted you so you will want to make a written  
record of the time and date of the call because now he has only five days from the time he made that call to have an initial contact letter in your hands. If he fails to do that you have another cause of action for federal court.

Then, of course, if he does file a suit against you it will be necessary for you to respond to that summons and complaint within the time alloted
or he will get a default judgment. You might want to file a graduated denial or you might want to file demand for more definitive statements if your state rules of procedure allow that. Some do and some don't.

You will need to start studying your state rules of procedure right now so you will know what you can and cannot or must do.

When he files suit you will want to be very careful to see whether or not he includes any affidavits. Those are quite often false and misleading and if so then you have more causes of action in federal court. I was teaching on a conference call last night and you might want to listen to the audio podcast of that call.
http://www.creditwrench.com/beatingupondebtcollectors.mp3

Remember that the best defense is a strong offense so it is always better to be a plaintiff in a federal court than it is to be a defendant in any court.

Bill Bauer
405-684-9297
405-227-9423