JUDGMENTS: Removing
a judgment from your credit reports & judgment help
When a debt is in collections
and you are served, you are given about 30 days to object
to the filing if you have a cause. If you can prove that
the debt is invalid you can get the hearing dismissed. Additionally,
if an agency has sued you without giving you the mandatory
30 day notice to dispute
the validity of a debt then that is a violation of the
Fair Debt Collections
Practices Act. But if the debt is yours and you know
it then you should contact the JC (judgment creditor) as
soon as you are served. You want to avoid the entry of judgment
at all costs because it will simply ruin your credit. Call,
fax or mail a request to the person suing you and offer
a compromise
to settle
the debt in exchange of dismissing the case.
Judgment Steps: Three
options - Question to the CRA:
Dismiss via Settlement: Vacate
There may be several
ways to remove a judgment from your credit reports. First
is the judgment still legally allowed to be on your credit
reports? Look at the SOL-
statute of limitations for judgments and if your state allows
it to be renewed. If it is still LEGALLY on your credit reports
you should dispute it to the credit bureaus before you contact
the JC- judgment creditor. It may be deleted without ever
paying it! This is because many court records are not verified
in time when disputed. The bureau has 30 days to verify the
accuracy of an item and to send a request to the courts and
to expect a reply within 30 days is a long shot. We all know
how slow the courts can be. If the court does not verify the
judgment within 30 days, the credit bureau will delete it.
However if the
item has been verified as timely and you have no other documentation
to prove it is not valid then you can negotiate
with the JC to dismiss the judgment in exchange for
money. This is a much better rating than a "paid judgment".
It tends to indicate that it was dismissed therefore "legally
void". This IS a better rating than showing you
simply paid it- that means you owed it. Not much of a credit
improvement. Make sure when you negotiate with the JC that
you put your terms in writing and have the JC sign
and date it. This can be used for proof later if the rating
doesn't change. Once you agree, the JC will complete a form
to dismiss the judgment and file it with the court. All public
records are reported to credit bureaus so you should see your
new rating in about 30 to 45 days.
Finally, there
is a procedure called a "motion to vacate" a judgment.
This procedure can be used if you have good cause to believe
you were sued in error, were exempt because of retirement
or SSI or served improperly. The great news is that about
80% of judgments are awarded in error- you just have to know
what to look for. Getting the judgment vacated means it does
not stay on your credit and you do not have to pay it so if
you think you have a good case for a vacate motion then by
all means seriously consider pursuing it. Contact
a lawyer about this issue. You can attempt to vacate
the judgment yourself or use a lawyer. If you do not know
a lot about it, you are better off hiring a lawyer for a few
hundred dollars.
Avoid judgments
at all costs!!
The statute of limitations
(SOL) on judgments is long--very long usually 12 to 20 years
and many are renewable (a judgment may be renewed if the creditor
files a new suit seeking to renew the judgment prior to the
expiration of the original judgment) therefore the judgment
could follow you around forever. Even if you pay it you will
be stuck with a 'satisfied judgment" for 7 years from
date satisfied not filed! This can be a hopeless situation
so avoid being sued at all costs. Be sure to always check
your SOL for debts if you
have been served because if it is expired (and many debts
expire in 4-6 years) you can use that to dismiss the case.
Many debtors are served everyday for debts and they simply
do not show up in court and a default judgment is entered
against them- big mistake! Had half of them simply checked
their SOL they would have found that the debt may have expired
years before but since they did not dispute this, the judgment
was awarded. You can use an expired
SOL as a solid defense in court against a creditor/collector.
If you are sued-
never let a default judgment be entered You have
nothing to lose by disputing the validity of the judgment
or even settling it out of court to avoid that nasty record
landing on your credit reports. Even if you owe the debt and
it is not legally expired under the SOL and you have no claim
to vacate it- you should attempt to settle it out of court---
before the court date so that it can be set aside. All the
JC wants is their money so calling them to work out a settlement
is the only smart thing to do. Otherwise you may be forced
to pay it later through wage levy or asset liens and not to
mention the damage it will have done to your credit.
Get our credit
repair ebookwhich discusses judgments
Find out how judgments work, get two letters for examples
in dealing with judgment creditors and understand the process
and your rights. Getting hit with a judgment is very scary
and EXTREMELY CONFUSING. What happens after you have been
sued and had a judgment won against you depends on what you
do immediately. This complete article and two sample letters
for settling a judgment and dismissing one is covered in our
credit repair- debt negotiations
ebook. The book is an instant download has sample letters
for credit bureaus, collection agencies and 2 judgment letters
plus free bonuses. You get lifetime access, ebook, bonus items
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