Hello. I want to apologize for taking over someone's thread with my questions. Our cases are very similar in nature. Here is the information I have regarding the suit. I should point out that I never had any contact from Midland Credit Management/ Clarkson and Hale prior to them serving my mother with it at an address I have not lived at in over 15 years.
1. Who is the named plaintiff in the suit?
Midland Credit Management
2. What is the name of the law firm handling the suit? (should be listed at the top of the complaint.)
Clarkson and Hale
3. How much are you being sued for?
$1776.35
4. Who is the original creditor? (if not the Plaintiff)
Capital One
5. How do you know you are being sued? (You were served, right?)
My mother was given the documents by a police officer.
6. How were you served? (Mail, In person, Notice on door)
I guess it would be in person to my mother at an address I do not reside.
7. Was the service legal as required by your state?
I am going to say no, according to: the Magistrate rules (1) Individuals. Upon an individual other than a minor under the age of fourteen (14) years or an incompetent person, by delivering a copy of the summons and complaint to the individual personally or by leaving copies of the summons and complaint at the individual's dwelling house or usual place of abode with a resident of suitable age and discretion, or by delivering a copy to an agent authorized by appointment or by law to receive service of process. Maybe someone could help explain this to me, but the way I am reading it is it needs to be served where I usually live-and I do not live there and have not for some time. I do not even receive any mail at that address.
There is a letter in my summons and complaint documents tat states to serve defendant at my mothers address and it has my current phone #.
8. What was your correspondence (if any) with the people suing you before you think you were being sued?
The summons was the first contact that I had.
9. What state and county do you live in?
Richland County, SC. The court that it was filed in is in my area, but it was filed with my mothers address, which is a different Magistrate court. (same state)
10. When is the last time you paid on this account? (looking to establish if you are outside of the statute of limitations)
It is just inside statute of limitations. I last paid 12/2017 they served my mother 11/03/2020
11. When did you open the account (looking to establish what card agreement may be applicable)?
September 5, 2015-- I honestly do not remember
12. What is the SOL on the debt? To find out:
3 years
13. What is the status of your case? Suit served? Motions filed? You can find this by a) calling the court or looking it up online (many states have this information posted - when you find the online court site, search by case number or your name).
Served. I gave answer with a counter claim that they filed the suit with an incorrect address and I also stated that because the plaintiff had access to my correct address with a debt they say I owe. I also stated they were negligent in sending the summons to an address I have not resided. I I stated that the Plaintiff had access to the alleged debt so they should have access to the correct mailing address (this may have been where I went wrong) I stated this was a violation of the FDCPA by communicating with a third party. The law firm answered back denying my claims, requested dismissal of my claim and a judgement in their favor. They also requested I show proof to my claims against them
14. Have you disputed the debt with the credit bureaus (both the original creditor and the collection agency?)
No
15. Did you request debt validation before the suit was filed? Note: if you haven't sent a debt validation request before being sued, it likely won't help create FDCPA violations, but disputing after being sued could be useful to show the court that you dispute the debt ('account stated' vs. 'breach of contract').
No I did not know about this debt until I was sued. I actually requested debt validation for some items prior to them starting their process and the debt was not on my credit report from them at that time.
16. How long do you have to respond to the suit? (This should be in your paperwork). If you don't respond to the lawsuit notice you will lose automatically. In 99% of the cases, they will require you to answer the summons, and each point they are claiming. We need to know what the "charges" are. Please post what they are claiming
30 days. I filed my answer Dec 1, 2020
They are claiming that:
- the account was charged off of 12/08/2018
- for good and valuable consideration the account was assigned to Midland making them the holder of the account
- that they are owed $1776.35
- that I agreed to pay all collection costs
Did you receive an interrogatory (questionnaire) regarding the lawsuit?
No
17. What evidence did they send with the summons? An affidavit? Statements from the OC? Contract? List anything else they attached as exhibits.
an affidavit, the request for a Sherriff to deliver the summons, A summons that I am required to answer, the complaint, There also is a notice required by the FDCPA that states the creditor is MCM, the debt is considered valid unless i dispute validity with 30 days of receipt of this notice (the notice is dated 10/7/2020---BUT I did not receive it until I was summoned. I sent a validation email to the office and I never received a response. Again, this is the first contact and first knowledge I have about this balance.
SO, I'm sure I messed up and I have already been advs to speak to a lawyer on the other thread. I will do this. BUT, I have 3questions. Is it too late to file an appeal, 2 I sent a DV, after receiving the summons. I did so within 30 days of getting it. i have not got anything from them except the reply to my answer--and I feel they never had my mailing address until I updated it in my answer and on the DV.
Final question, even though the court that is handling the case is the correct one for my mailing address, do I have any leverage against them for filing the documents using my mothers address which is served by a different magistrate court).
I almost want to settle with them, but I really don't remember what I owe, and I never received anything from this company or law firm prior to the summons. Sorry it is a lot, but I really don't have money for an attorney- I am barely making it paycheck to paycheck-- this whole thing has sent my anxiety into overdrive.
thanks in advance for your help.