Possible Defenses That You Can Use in Credit Card Debt Lawsuits

Credit card debt lawsuits do not happen overnight.  Instead, they are the culmination of debts that have built up over the course of several years.  In some cases, you worried about the debt every day and tried to find ways to pay it, until you eventually gave up and just watched with trepidation as the increasingly threatening emails and letters kept arriving.  In other cases, the lawsuit might come as a surprise.  You might have forgotten about the debt, either because you have so many other debts to pay or because, once it became clear to you that you could not pay the debt, you told the creditor to stop contacting you about payment and, in compliance with the law, the creditor stopped.  The good news is that you have a chance to get a ruling in your favor in a credit card lawsuit, and you might even be able to persuade the court to dismiss the lawsuit before it goes to trial.  If you need representation as a defendant in a credit card debt collection lawsuit, contact a Philadelphia debt relief lawyer.

The Creditor Missed the Deadline for Filing a Lawsuit

The statute of limitations for filing debt collection lawsuits is four years, counting from the first missed payment.  This means that, if you had phone conversations with representatives of the creditor after your first missed payment but did not send any more money, even if you promised to, the date of those conversations does not reset the statute of limitations.  If the debt is more than four years old, the court must dismiss the lawsuit.

The Creditor Cannot Prove That It Is Entitled to Payment

A creditor can only prevail in a debt collection lawsuit if it can prove that it lent you the money or assumes entitlement for payment from the original creditor.  If the plaintiff is the credit card company with which you opened an account, then it can easily prove this by showing the agreement by which you opened the account.  If the plaintiff is a collection agency that bought the debt from the original creditor, or worse, from another collection agency, then you are in a stronger position to cast doubt on its claims.  Your lawyer should ask the plaintiff to provide documentation of the chain of ownership of the debt.

The Court Is in the Process of Discharging the Debt

If you file for bankruptcy protection, the court must pause any lawsuits against you that arise from debts you are attempting to discharge in the bankruptcy proceeding.  If the bankruptcy court discharges these debts, then the court in which the creditor sued you must also dismiss the debt collection lawsuit.

Contact CONSUMERLAWPA.com About Recovering From Credit Card Debt

A Philadelphia consumer law attorney can help you cope with debt collection lawsuits by credit card companies and other creditors.  Contact CONSUMERLAWPA.com to set up a free, confidential consultation.

Source:

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