Capital One - Relentless

[dmitchell]

Cap1 filed an action against me late last year and was unable to serve me so the summons was returned "non-served." I noticed in the public record that they filed a motion to "Transfer the above cause of action" to the county just north of me this week. I took at trip to the courthouse and I believe they pulled my fathers name (who is deceased 5+ years) and is asking the court to (I guess) attempt service at my parents house. They stated in the motion that they believe I moved there (I haven't). Since I have not been served and don't live there should I be concerned or do anything? I have mentioned this to my Mom who will probably just say he died years ago...we have the Jr. Sr. thing going on here. Cap1 is running into the 3 year statute of limitations since the card agreement is under the rules of Virginia. They are also coming up on the 120 day limit Florida places to have a defendant served.

Any advise from anyone smarter than I would be helpful.

[GoingDown]

What do you hope to accomplish?

If they are going to sue you, you need to look down the road to the consequences of the lawsuit and determine what your best course of action should be right now.

Do you have wages which can be garnished if they get a judgment against you?
Do you own any significant assets?
Do you have a checking account or savings account?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you should look into filing bankruptcy. Try to determine whether you feel confident filing pro se (on your own) or whether you will need a bankruptcy attorney. Attend a few free initial consultations with different bankruptcy attorneys where you can discuss your situation and determine what your best options are at this point.

If you need time to prepare for your bankruptcy, then you might want to file a written answer to the lawsuit in court and fight it and drag out the length of time in between their filing of the lawsuit and when they get the judgment, so you can file bankruptcy before they get a judgment against you. Remember, filing bankruptcy stops a lawsuit dead in its tracks with the automatic stay if you officially notify the court where the lawsuit was filed before the judge issues a judgment.

If you are truly judgment proof / collection proof-- no significant assets to lose or get liened on, no wages to garnish, no checking account, no savings account, etc., then you can do what I did-- nothing. CrapOne got a judgment against me years ago, and so far they haven't gotten a penny from me. And never will.

[dmitchell]

Actually, I have been pretty sucessful waiting these folks out. Cap1's agreement is goverened by the rules of VA and they have a 3 year statute of limitations. I had several cards with them and this is the only one they seem to be chasing. They waited until the last minute to file so if I can avoid the BK, that is what I am trying to do. They also have 120 days to serve and they have 30 days to go.

What I was looking for was to get a read on should I worry about this. Since I never lived in the county where they are trying to move this to, I think I am in the clear. Just thought someone might have an idea....

Thanks for the reply.

[GoingDown]

Not the same county in which you live?

If it is even in the same state, I think you have something to worry about.

[SWConsultant]

dmitchell,

How did you do with Capital One? If this is the only creditor annoying you, you could likely settle with them for a very low amount. I was able to accomplish a 20% settlement with Capital One (it was actually through their collections arm "Coface") at the end of January. If you are worried about garnishment and possibly have some assets that could be exposed, then try reaching out to them and trying to settle first.

If you are ok allowing them to have the judgement and have nothing for them to collect, then I guess your strategy might work. If you want to move on from this, then try and offer them 20% and see what happens. Definitely you do not need to give your current address when you speak to them, just do this over the phone or through fax.

Let me know how you turn out.