Being Sued by a Debt Collector? - What to Do Next

Most people have little interaction with the court system and it can be a scary experience when collection letters threaten to sue. Even scarier is when someone shows up at the door to deliver a summons. The following is not intended to be specific legal advice or to form a lawyer-client relationship, but instead presents some general information on how to react when you're sued by a creditor, a debt collector or a collector's law firm.

In most cases, a lawsuit is started by a summons and complaint. These are legal documents that are written by the other side's lawyer and filed with the court. They can be served on you directly, left with a person of suitable age and discretion and then mailed to you, or in some cases stuck to the door and mailed. In rare cases, the court can even order service by publication in a newspaper or other creative means.

The summons is a very important document, but it is basically a cover sheet. In general language, the summons will tell you that you have between 20 and 30 days to respond and will contain some other required statements. There is no court date listed. The court date in a debt collection action is not set until both parties have had a chance to submit papers to the court.

When you are sued, the complaint will contain the debt collector's claims against you. It may be written in lawyer-language, but it will set out why the creditor or collection agency believes that you owe a debt.

One of the most confusing steps for someone being sued is figuring out what to do next. Unfortunately, many people do the worst possible thing: nothing at all.

If you do nothing, the debt collector will win by default. The lawyer will show up at court, present his or her facts without anyone arguing against that version of events, and the judge will usually grant a judgment against you for the amount requested in the complaint.

Even if you call the lawyer or the court to talk to someone, that isn't sufficient when you are being sued. The court must have an official record that you are "appearing" in the case (even if you're not actually going to court yet.)

When you receive the summons and complaint from the debt collector, you have a certain period of time to respond. Within that time, you must write out your defenses. The written defenses are called an "answer." This must then be sent to the other side's attorney and a copy sent to the court. The court can advise you on the best way to send it and the forms you'll need to file to prove you served the answer on the debt collector who is suing you.

If you do not have any defenses, you should still write to the court with your current contact information and ask that all further papers be sent to you at that address. You should note in the letter that it is a "notice of appearance." Unless you officially appear in the case, you will not receive any notices about upcoming court dates or other information on the case. This is true even if you've talked to someone about your case, either in the office of the debt collector or at the court.

The most common mistake people make is not showing up or doing anything after receiving the summons. Just because the document doesn't list a court date, don't wait to see what else you here. Take immediate action to preserve your rights to defend yourself in court.