Alabama FDCPA — How Long Does A Typical Case Take When Filed In Federal Court?
Alabama FDCPA — How Long Does A Typical Case Take When Filed In Federal Court?
When you file suit in Alabama federal court against an abusive debt collector under the FDCPA (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act) the typical time to get the case resolved is a year or less.
Let’s talk about this for a moment.
First, federal judges tend to want the case ready for trial within a year of filing the case.
Second, most cases settle and are not tried.
In fact, we are only aware of about three jury trials under the FDCPA in the past five or ten years. So the vast majority are resolved within a year.
Finally, keep in mind that a judge (including a federal judge) has to have some flexibility in changing their schedule.
This is especially true if they are trying criminal cases.
Criminal defendants have a constitutional right to a “speedy trial” so sometimes your trial schedule may be adjusted.
Also, sometimes there are good reasons that a case has taken longer to get ready for trial — perhaps a party gets sick, etc. — and the judge has the right to extend the deadlines.
But most cases do get resolved within a year and I would estimate most of the ones which settle within a year get resolved within 6 months.
Particularly if you have good lawyers on both sides who can evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a case.
It is frustrating when we are dealing with a “kool-aid-drinker” who can’t see the true value of a case but normally the defense lawyers are pretty good about analyzing the cases.
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