CA turning over debt to Lawyer - how long

[ChrissyF]

now will it take for them to sue me? It was a Cap One bill that was turned over to a CA (who says they will give to the attorney next week). The total debt is $25K and they offered me a settlement of
$10K. If I had it I would pay, but of course don't.

I am planning on filing BK, but have a boat issue that the lawyer told me we could probably work out with the trustee. Now I wanted to wait until after the summer just to be on the safe side, because it would be really disappointing for the kids if we didn't have it. It's NOT a luxury boat it's over 20 years old with a loan still on it. It's just some enjoyment for them since we can't offer much of anything else for them.

How long does it take for the lawyer to sue me or do they try to get money from me before pursuing a judgement?

[treehugger1]

Did you intially request debt validation from the CA? This is always a good thing to do. If they do send the account to an attorney firm, there is no guarantee you will be immediately sued. If the attorney firm contacts you, then you should send them a DV request.

The bottom line is that you could be sued at any time. There is no way to tell what and when a OC will proceed with a suit.

I would simply plan your life with an understanding that you could be sued tomorrow. I know you would probably like a better estimate, but a reality check is also in order. Can you deal with a lawsuit? Do you have assets that can be seized? Can you live off of 75% take-home pay? If not, then why wait to file for BK? Summer fun should not take priority over dealing with your fiscal crisis.

[optimistic1]

If the firm is local, your chance of being sued goes up rather quickly. Especially if they answer your DV rather quickly. I would almost say, dont DV them, as it might lead them to believe your need to stall, but I dont see what benefit they would receive really.

[ChrissyF]

Thanks, I believe the collection agency is in TX, so does that mean that's where their lawyer is?

As for summer fun, there's actually a little more to the story about the boat. My husband and his friend are partners in the boat for almost 5 years now and they both make half the payment. The loan and title are in my name only since they had bad credit at the time BEFORE we were married. I am filing alone and I am hoping the trustee wont want the boat since I don't know how I would handle it with the friend (you learn from your mistakes I would NEVER take out a loan for anyone again). This loan is paid each month and if they took the boat the friend would want half the value which I don't have. I was told I can't do a transfer even though the friend has good credit now. The attorney seems to think the trustee wont want the boat and if he did we could pay towards it to get it back (which I don't have either).

[catleg]

What state do you live in? 25k is a pretty big number so it may need to be filed in your state's general civil court, which costs more and does not move as fast.

[flyinbroke]

Texas small claims is capped at 10K so Catleg is right...it will have to go civil court. Some of the local courts are going sloooowwwww, where small claims can move faster.

[ryan]

If the firm is local, your chance of being sued goes up rather quickly. Especially if they answer your DV rather quickly. I would almost say, dont DV them, as it might lead them to believe your need to stall, but I dont see what benefit they would receive really.

Optimistic, thats an interesting take on DVing vs. not Dving....and I'm not understanding what you mean by "don't see what benefit they would receive."

[ChrissyF]

Thanks for all of your responses. I live in NY.

I already DV the CA and received that back. Today I was told that if I didn't give them $10K by the 29th they were turning it over. Not sure if they were just trying to scare me or not, either way it doesn't matter I don't have $10K.

[optimistic1]

Optimistic, thats an interesting take on DVing vs. not Dving....and I'm not understanding what you mean by "don't see what benefit they would receive."

Well suing of course, by doing that, you basically hasten the debtor into filing sooner, even if that means the debtor must make sacrifices. The original poster speaks of not wanting to file because of a boat, and playing it safe. Well what would you do if a bus came driving right at you, would you just sit there or would you dodge it to save yourself?

[catleg]

I would look to transfer the boat to the friend anyway.
Then it becomes a question of whether it's worth doing for the trustee to pursue it, or work out a negotiated value with the friend.
You have any idea what the boat is worth and what is owed on it?
I take it that you don't have any judgments yet?