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About Creditwrench
Expertise
Debt Collections law, Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), federal law, how to properly answer court summons for collection cases, how to prepare federal cases against debt collectors, how to deal with debt collection phone calls.

Experience
I've been an active consumer advocate for more than 40 years and have helped hundreds of people win cases against debt collectors as well as helping them defeat demands for summary judgment lodged against them by banks, debt collectors and defeat mortgage foreclosures and keep their homes.

Education/Credentials
Paralegal courses for the most part.
I have been teaching people how to deal with judgments, mortgage foreclosures and other such problems both on and off the internet for many, many years. I am a Richard Cornforth information provider ever since 2000 and worked with many other organizations and causes since 1980. I was Oklahoma State Chairman for the nationwide drive to defeat the Constitutional Convention which was proposed by various factions within our federal government such as the Council of State Governments and the National Organization of State Governors who were working hard to organize a Constitutional Convention to be held in 1995 for the purpose of rewriting our American Constitution to be more acceptable to the United Nations. I worked with Senator Charles Duke of Colorado and Senator Don Rogers of California and many others across the nation to keep them from getting the number of delegate states required to lawfully hold a Con-Con and we were successful. I have worked with many other legislative issues in Oklahoma and have always been very successful.

You are here: Experts > Business > Corporate Law > Collections Law > Pregnant and stressed, must file discovery before the 12th of November

Collections Law - Pregnant and stressed, must file discovery before the 12th of November

Expert: Creditwrench - 11/6/2009

Question
QUESTION: Dear Mr. Creditwrench,

I really need your help! I am being sued by Levy and Ass. I live in NW Ohio. I have a 3 year old and 6 months pregnant (she is due in January).
Long story short. Levy and Ass. is suing me for an credit card I do not recognized. After almost a year of continuances by both parties we are at the final stage. I am terrified the the Plaintiff will receive summary judgement. The presiding judge has given me til the 12th of november to file discovery. I never asked them to validate the debt other than when answering their motions for judgment.
Is it too late to ask them to validate the debt? I have asked them 4 times to please send me any proof that this is my debt. Twice in my answers filed at the court house, once by phone and once in person to their "representing" attorney.
I just saw the Judge on the 26th of Oct. He suggest that I hire an attorney. I am being sued for about $1000.00 + fees, interest etc. If I could afford an attorney trust me I would!

How do I file a discovery? Do I need to file it with the courts too? Is it too late to ask them to validate the debt?

In my answer to their discovery I explained that I am a victim of Identity theft. I even sent them a copy of my credit report which shows a home mortgage from 1990. I was in the 8th grade in 1990. I told this all to the judge. He told me I had til the 12 to answer their motion for summary judgement and file discovery. My court date is the 13th of december.

My back is against the wall. I am hormonal and serious stressed and freaking out.

Please help me.

ANSWER: It never ceases to amaze me how stupid lawyers can get. You have disputed the debt multiple times and demanded that they prove the debt yet in spite of that they continue to try to collect. Absolutely unbelievable. But on top of that you are adding to the comedy of errors by your lack of knowledge about the law and such matters. That lack of knowledge on your part is perfectly understandable but their lack is unforgivable. Even though the judge might know it his job does not allow him to tell you or them about what is going on. What the lawyer is risking is the fact that you might find out how he has violated the law by continuing to attempt to collect after you disputed and demanded validation of the debt and taking him to federal court. That's the way to beat this deal. If you do that it will end up costing him two or three times what he is trying to collect from you just in attorney fees alone. He would lose not matter what happens. Then they will have to settle with you on top of that. I just wonder what else they have done to violate your rights under the law?? So now you say you have to file an answer to their motion for summary judgment? No, if they motioned for summary judgment you need to file an objection, not an answer. And yes, you need to file discovery as well and serve it upon the plaintiff's attorney. I'd want to start off with demand for admissions if it were me having to do it but I would have done that at the same time I filed my response to the complaint. I think you can end up winning but only if you take them to federal court. You say you would hire an attorney if you could afford it? And get what? A few more chapters to this comedy of errors? That's about the best you could hope for and the worst you could expect is that the lawyer you paid good money for would sell you down the river of debt. You can't win this one for free but you can win it for a whole lot less than you would pay a lawyer to lose it for you.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: So, I was able to find a form that list a bunch of questions for "request to produce, request for admissions, and notice of service of interrogatories" and I will also ask them to validate the debt by certified letter and also have that filed with the clerk of courts.

What should my "objection" say? Just "I object to the Plaintiffs request for summary judgement, this is not my debt?" Could you give me the specific wording? I plan on filing everything on Tuesday the 10th after I drop my son off at preschool.

Sir, I have never sued anyone before, this makes me nervous. My main objective right now is to avoid having to pay for something I am not responsible for.

What do you mean when you say, "I can't win this one for free, but I can win it for a whole lot less than I would pay a lawyer to lose it for you?"

Are you telling me that I am doomed to lose my case in December? Even if I file all of the above?

Please help! Thank you!

Just a player in a poorly written comedy.

ANSWER: So you found a form on line somewhere that has a number of questions someone thinks you should ask but do those questions fit what is allowed under your state and local rules of civil procedure? Maybe they do and maybe they don't but you are all ready to go file them without knowing that and also without knowing that the clerk of the court will not accept them for filing in the first place? And you say you are planning to file your demand for validation as well without knowing that the clerk of the court won't let you do that either??? And then you ask me whether or not you will lose even though you file all that stuff??? Yes, you will lose but you can turn this sow's ear into a nice silk purse simply by learning how. Learning the right way to do things and learning your rules of procedure. You must learn that if you want to win you will have to end up taking them to federal court for their violations of federal law.
That's the surest way to win and you won't even need a lawyer to do it for you.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: So are you telling me to give you a call? Because I find your answers difficult to "read".

Answer
You can do that anytime you like or you can get on my conference call this evening. It starts at 7:00 pm central time, just 3 hours from now. The call in number is (218) 895-2685 and the pin number is 2452# or you can call me personally at (405) 237-2174 just about any time except when I am on the conference call. You can call me Sat. & Sunday too. Now then, I understand that you are saying it isn't even your debt. So can you prove that it isn't your debt? You won't be able to just tell them it isn't your debt. You will have to prove it somehow. You have to make them prove the SSN of the person who had the account, last 4 at least then show that isn't yours. Or you will have to make them tell you the address where the bills were sent to then show from utility records that you never lived there. Its not always easy to prove that they got the wrong person. Yes, I may be able to give you some suggestions as to how to prove it if you call me or get on the conference call.

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