Someones trying to serve me.....advice please

[Flypilot]

I was talking to my old neighbor today. He said that a guy has been by my old house twice in 2 months. The second time my old neighbor went across the street to see why the guy was looking into the windows of the house. The couple that bought it from me only uses it half the year so it is empty right now. The guy said he had some court paper work for my wife and I. My neighbor told him we sold the house a year ago and he didn't know where we were at.

Here are the questions:

1) Can they get a judgement on you if they cannot serve you? I pulled a record search on my wife and I and nothing came up in our county.

2) Can they put a lien on you personally?

3) Can they serve us at work legally?

4) Chane, Trish, or any of you experienced specialists..... what is your suggestion? I don't even know who it is trying to serve us. We are only two years through the 3 YEAR SOL on a few debts that are haunting us from the realestate bust.

Thanks,
Flypilot

[E46R]

1) Can they get a judgement on you if they cannot serve you? I pulled a record search on my wife and I and nothing came up in our county.

2) Can they put a lien on you personally? -

3) Can they serve us at work legally?

4) Chane, Trish, or any of you experienced specialists..... what is your suggestion? I don't even know who it is trying to serve us. We are only two years through the 3 YEAR SOL on a few debts that are haunting us from the realestate bust.

Thanks,
Flypilot

Answers to your questions....

1. They can not get a judgement without serving you - If they are trying to serve you once they do you have about a month to show until hearing date.

Once there is a hearing date then they will try to work with you to sattle it out of court - or you can prolong the process by showing up and asking judge to continue the date becasue you are not ready. On the next hearing date you can ask proof they most likely will not have it so they will set another date. Meanwhile try to work with them to sattle it out of court. With the company that you own money to and not the attorney - they have to work with you unless you hire a lawyer then your laywer will work with the other law firm to get this taken care of. So do not hire a lawyer. Once they know you did the company will tell you to work with their lawyer. One last thing you can do is as for Jury which will delay the process as I said meanwhile to work with the original to get sattlement. If a law firm bought the account they paid not more then .10 on the dollar usually .30 - .50 cents will make them take the amount. If they do ask them to put it in writing also make sure that they will remove it from your credit - or mark it as paid.

2) Can they put a lien on you personally?

They can not put Lien on you without getting you into court. Serving you it's just getting you in to court in front of the judge to get the process started.

3. Can they serve us at work legally?

YES they can.

4. Start calling the people that you own money to or even go to court house and look up your name - it will show up, then you will know who to call.

[Trish]

Flypilot,
You need to check into your state laws to see what's acceptable as far as process server laws

Go here:
United States Rules of Civil Procedure, Process Serving Laws ? ServeNow.com

It actually is possible to have a lien and/or judgment against you without being served. I've seen it happen......legally and illegally. So be sure to check that link and see what rules they have to follow for your state.

If you can find out who it is.....see if you can work out something outside of court. Hopefully you can make payment arrangements if you do owe the debt and it's within SOL. Otherwise court costs can make the debt as much as double.

[E46R]

And I hope I did not miss anything in my post or try to scare anyone.

[Flypilot]

Originally Posted by Trish

Flypilot,
You need to check into your state laws to see what's acceptable as far as process server laws

Go here:
United States Rules of Civil Procedure, Process Serving Laws ? ServeNow.com

It actually is possible to have a lien and/or judgment against you without being served. I've seen it happen......legally and illegally. So be sure to check that link and see what rules they have to follow for your state.

If you can find out who it is.....see if you can work out something outside of court. Hopefully you can make payment arrangements if you do owe the debt and it's within SOL. Otherwise court costs can make the debt as much as double.

I didn't see anything in the AZ laws on that site about serving someone at their place of employment. What happens if they cannot locate you?

I have just made an appointment with a consumer/litigation attorney. I will fight the bottom feeder scumbags that bought the debt for pennies who are trying to get 100% of the debt. They deserve nothing...

Can I still work with the OC and settle with them? It has been almost two years since last pmt?

Fly

[Trish]

From what I can tell, you can be served at work.

"Rule 4.1 Process: Service of Process Within Arizona.

Territorial Limits of Effective Service.

All process may be served anywhere within the territorial limits of the state"

Not only that......it looks like if they can't find you, they can just put it in your local newspaper.

"Service by Publication; Return.

Where the person to be served is one whose residence is unknown to the party seeking service but whose last known residence address was within the state, or has avoided service of process, and service by publication is the best means practicable under the circumstances for providing notice of the institution of the action, then service may be made by publication in accordance with the requirements of this subpart. Such service shall be made by publication of the summons, and of a statement as to the manner in which a copy of the pleading being served may be obtained, at least once a week for four successive weeks (1) in a newspaper published in the county where the action is pending, and (2) in a newspaper published in the county of the last known residence of the person to be served if different from the county where the action is pending. If no newspaper is published in any such county, then the required publications shall be made in a newspaper published in an adjoining county. The service shall be complete thirty days after the first publication. When the residence of the person to be served is known, the party or officer making service shall also, on or before the date of the first publication, mail the summons and a copy of the pleading being served, postage prepaid, to that person at that person’s place of residence. Service by publication and the return thereof may be made by the party procuring service or that party’s attorney in the same manner as though made by an officer. The party or officer making service shall file an affidavit showing the manner and dates of the publication and mailing, and the circumstances warranting the utilization of the procedure authorized by this subpart, which shall be prima facie evidence of compliance herewith. A printed copy of the publication shall accompany the affidavit. If the residence of the party being served is unknown, and for that reason no mailing was made, the affidavit shall so state."

As far as talking to the OC, you can try.....but if it has been turned over to an atty, the OC may not talk to you and instead refer you to the lawyer that's been assigned to the debt.

[E46R]

You can go and get advice for an attorney, but do not hire him. once you do you will not be able to talk to the Original creditor who you own money to because they will be refering you to your and their attorney. Ifyou do not have na attorney you have a right to talk to the OC but that all end if you hire one, you will no longer be able to get the best sattlement.

[cranford]

I talked to some debt settlement companies who were referred to me indirectly through this forum. All of them said I need a BK atty, because I already have several judgments against me and one current garnishment. Anyone agree or disagree?

[Trish]

Originally Posted by E46R

You can go and get advice for an attorney, but do not hire him. once you do you will not be able to talk to the Original creditor who you own money to because they will be refering you to your and their attorney. Ifyou do not have na attorney you have a right to talk to the OC but that all end if you hire one, you will no longer be able to get the best sattlement.

I understand what you are saying here, E46R.....once you hire an atty, the company and/or the atty representing them can no longer discuss things with you. They must correspond with the atty.

In this particular case, if there has already been an atty assigned to the OC (which is what it sounds like) then the OP will no longer be able to speak to the OC anyway. If this is something that may go to court.....then it may be in the OP's best interest to seek out an atty.

IMHO, you should only represent yourself if you understand the laws and procedures and feel comfortable doing it. Otherwise, it will save a lot of frustration and time to go ahead and get the advice/retain an atty.
If money is an issue, you can contact your local state bar association and they will have a lawyer referral service. You can at the very least get an initial consultation for about $30.

[Trish]

Originally Posted by cranford

I talked to some debt settlement companies who were referred to me indirectly through this forum. All of them said I need a BK atty, because I already have several judgments against me and one current garnishment. Anyone agree or disagree?

Hi cranford,
You may want to start a new thread in the BK section since this is a different situation.
If you are considering BK, then yes you would need to consult with a BK atty.
If do not wish to file for bankruptcy, then you need to look at your judgments/debts and work out a plan for paying those off or disputing them......depending on the circumstances.

If you would like some more info, look through the BK section and also the Public Records section. That may help answer some of your questions.

HTH