I've Been Sued - What Should I Do?

While we can’t give you legal advice without considering your individual situation, the following is generally accepted as common sense guidance for you to consider. You should also read our blog post on the two essential things that a debt collector or debt buyer must prove when they sue you.  Please contact us or another consumer attorney to get specific advice that you can rely upon. Without further disclaimers, here are some suggestions:

1. First, take a deep breath. Seriously. Being sued just means the debt buyer or creditor has made claims against you. As long as you answer the complaint in the time allowed, the debt buyer will have to prove its case against you. There will be no garnishment without a judgment. No one will start seizing your cars or house or first born until a judgment is entered against you.
2. Second, you must answer the complaint in a timely manner. If you don’t answer the complaint, the court may enter what is known as “default judgment” which means what it sounds like. By default, since you didn’t answer, you now have a judgment entered. The debt buyer has won. But that won’t happen to you as you are going to file your answer in a timely manner, right? If you have been sued in Alabama District or Small Claims Court, you have 14 days from when you were served. If you were sued in Circuit Court in Alabama you have 30 days from when you were served. Please protect yourself by reading the summons that accompanied the complaint when you were served.
3. Third, if you don’t agree with everything in the complaint, deny the allegations. Normally debt buyer complaints are not like real complaints (see for example consumer complaints filed by us here ) but instead just say you owe the money. If you don’t, or don’t know that this debt buyer truly owns the debt, or if you don’t agree to the amount owed, or if the statute of limitations has expired, or there is some other reason the debt buyer is not entitled to judgment against you, then you can file an answer with the court and serve the debt buyer’s lawyer with an answer denying the complaint.
4. Finally, make sure you do not miss any deadlines. This includes answering the complaint (described in number two) and any court dates. At the trial, remember the burden of proof should be on the debt buyer to prove that you owe this money and that you owe it to the debt buyer. As far as trial goes, it is beyond the scope of this article to explain how to win at trial but feel free to contact us for assistance. You can call us at 205-879-2447 or 205-714-4443 or fill out a contact sheet by clicking here .