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Facts about judgement entered after satute of limitations
Question: In the last 2 years, a collection agency has filed two judgments against me, froze my checking account and garnished wages for an account that was past the statute of limitations in my state. Am I eligible to do anything? I also have letters from them stating that my account representatives names were: "A. Bully" and "S. Hussein". Am I able to get any of mygarnished wages back? And can I dispute these judgments since the statute has expired? Thanks!!
Answer: Unfortunately, since you apparently did not respond to the lawsuit filed against you by this collection agency in a timely manner, allowing this creditor to obtain a judgment against you, you will likely face an uphill battle in your effort to have the judgment set aside and have the wage garnishment and bank levy stopped. While the expiration of the statute of limitations provides an absolute defense to a lawsuit filed against you by the creditor, if you fail to assert the defense and the court grants a judgment against you, the court may be unwilling to reopen the case. Generally speaking, in order for a court to set aside a judgment you must be able to show that the judgment was entered in error, that you had good reason for failing to respond to the summons, and/or that there is a good chance that you will prevail if the judgment is set aside and the case reopened. In addition, the defense of statute of limitations is an affirmative defense, meaning that, in most cases, you have a positive obligation to state the defense in a timely manner; failure to do so means that you often lose the benefit of that defense. At this point, I think it unlikely that you will be able
to stop the wage garnishment and bank levy being used to execute on the judgment against you unless you are able to convince a judge that the judgment was entered in error and that you will likely prevail if the case is reopened. To learn more about statute of limitations, and to review your state?s laws regarding the limitation of legal actions, you can visit http://www.bcsalliance.com/y_debt_sol.html.
If you are planning to file a motion with the court in an effort to have this judgment set aside, I highly encourage you to retain an attorney to represent you. An attorney should be able to advise you of the strengths and weaknesses of your case, and whether or not you should pursue legal action to try to stop the wage garnishment, bank levy, and other judgment enforcement actions being taken by the creditor. To find an attorney in your area who may be able to represent you in this case, you can contact your state Bar Association?s Attorney Referral Service; you will be able to explain your legal problem, and they should be able to refer you to an attorney nearby who can assist you. Most state Bars provide information regarding their referral services online, so an internet search is a good place to start in your
search for a qualified attorney.
In regard to the letters you received from the collection agency stating that your account representative was ?A. Bully? and ?S. Hussein,? you may have a separate cause of action against the creditor under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA), a federal law which regulates the activity of collection agencies. For example, the FDCPA generally prohibits harassment and intimidation by collection agencies in the course of their collection activities. Again, you should consult with an attorney to discuss the possibility of filing a lawsuit against the collection agency for violation of your rights under the FDCPA. To learn more about the FDCPA and your rights as a consumer, I encourage you to visit the Federal Trade Commission?s website at http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fdcpajump.shtm.
I wish you the best of luck in resolving the judgment that was entered against you, and hope that you are able to find an attorney who can assist you in stopping the wage garnishment and bank levy. Hopefully, the information I have provided will assist you in solving these problems, and help you Find. Learn. Save.
Best,
Bill
www.bills.com
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1. Posted by Diane Hatfield on Wednesday 28th May 2008 09:57
If a judgment was filed against me what is the statue of limitations on this.
2. Posted by Bill on Wednesday 28th May 2008 10:51
There is no statute of limitations with respect to a judgment. A statute of limitations applies to the lenders for them to take action on non payment of debts within a certain time period. If a judgment has been issued against you, then it will remain on your credit until it is satisfied and maybe even after.
3. Posted by michelle on Sunday 20th July 2008 12:16
What if you you never knew about a judgement against you because you were never contacted and it has never appeared on your credit report?
4. Posted by Bill on Monday 21st July 2008 09:01
You should first try and get it removed all together. You can ask the judge to vacate the judgment directly for improper service. To do this, you must file a motion to vacate. Here is a sample, but you will find more info on the Internet: http://www.creditinfocenter.com/legal/VacatingJudgments.shtml. If you find that you have to pay, you can try and bargain with the creditor. Tell them you will pay it if they will vacate the judgment. Once you pay them, however, you lose your bargaining chips and they will never vacate it for you. So always try this tactic before you write the check. Most importantly maintain everything in written records.