Disputing a Court Summons for Credit Card Debt
The first important step is to actually respond to the court summons. Out of guilt, too many people mistakenly defeat themselves by ignoring a summons for credit card debt. They then lose by default and the collection attorney has his way with them.
Answering a court summons for credit card debt is actually not that intimidating. It only takes a two or three page document. To defeat the collection attorney, the consumer’s answer needs to demand he properly document the debt, according to the Credit Card Debt Survival Guide.
Collection attorneys know the consumer has a right to proper documentation, but frequently they cannot produce it. Most credit card agreements do not have signed contracts. Producing a complete accounting of the alleged amount owed can be a challenge as well. Debt buyers buy large batches of discharged credit card accounts from banks. Collection attorneys for debt buyers have trouble documenting the ownership of the individual accounts in the batch.
The answer to the summons must comply with the rules of civil procedure for the consumer’s local court where the summons was filed. These rules dictate the proper service of the summons to the consumer and of the answer to the plaintiff. They govern how much time the consumer has to respond to the summons once it is received (frequently 20 days).
Most importantly, the rules dictate the wording of the affirmative defenses the consumer uses in the answer. As a start, the consumer can find a generically worded answer in a resource like the Credit Card Debt Survival Guide. Then, the consumer needs to get the advice of a local attorney on the answer’s exact wording per the local rules of civil procedure.
Most consumers do not answer credit card debt summonses. Knowing this, collection attorneys will send out large batches of summonses waiting for the defaults. If they get a few responses, they drop those claims to focus on the easy money.
To beat them, civil summonses for credit card debt need to be answered!
This content is not intended as a substitute for legal advice. If you need an attorney in your local area, please contact a licensed attorney in your state.