to settle? I found this: ---------------------- However, I believe that the best reason for bringing an action in the Special Civil Part is because judgment execution procedures tend to be far more effective in the Special Civil Part than in the Law Division. This effectiveness is as a result of the fact that Officers of the Special Civil Part are compensated on a commission basis from the monies which they collect. They receive 10% of the first $5,000 collected and 5% of any amount collected in excess of $5,000. This creates a great incentive, since these commissions are a taxed cost and are paid by the debtor, resulting in Officers of the Special Civil Part being much more aggressive in their handling of the execution process. The Sheriffs' Officers, who are responsible for execution upon Law Division judgments and typically receive only a nominal fee for mileage when executing upon a debtor's assets, do not have the same monetary incentives. -- ---------------------------------------------------------- I just found the above from a NJ Law Blog website. It doesn't look like the court has any incentive to favor debtors...should I just try to settle this with the attorney?
Also... Called Citi Internal Recovery unit. They found the account. Last payment made was in Nov of 2002.
No, I would just reply with documents that are in your possession. I would not go above and beyond what you have currently (such as calling old creditors). This is their burden. Was the discovery served with their Complaint or did they give you this after your Answer was filed?
The discovery was filed after my answer. I think this is standard procedure -- the New Jersey Law Blog details a timeline that a CA law firm should follow in the event that an answer is filed (Interregatories, Notice to Produce, etc). At this point I'm trying to determine whether or not they'll get a judgment against me. Odds are in their favor, given that the courts have the incentive of 10% what they collect, and it's probably not difficult at all for them to prove the chain of custody since Citi admits they turned it over to Unifund...I'd rather settle and try to work out a payment arrangement with them to avoid the judgment...
Have they produced a chain of evidence though? While it may be easy enough to get it, that doesn't mean that they will. If the discovery was served after your Answer, you will need to answer that but, object to things. Don't do their job. If you don't have what they request, say you don't have it. If you can't answer what they're asking, don't. If you think it's unlikely to lead to admissible evidence, say so or if it's stupid and overbroad, object. You will also need to file discovery of your own now. Enigma should be able to give you a template. Honestly, if you have the funds to settle I'd hire counsel instead to fight this.
The court is impartial. That's what court is all about. If the court is not impartial, then there is a serious problem with the court. There are rules for judges and laws on the books that would deal with that. The court will not get any money beyond the filing fees for this case. It's not their business, they're not there to make money. If the guy in the black and white stripes (or the black robes) has a stake in the game, he should be going to jail, whether it's the NFL or court. Those who go out and do the collecting on a judgment are another story, but we're not to that yet. It looks like the officers of the Special Civil Part are analagous to the New York City Marshals (one "L"), and I would guess that there has been some cross-pollination between the two states' laws because I don't know of similar quasi-official judgment collectors in the other 48 states. That means not a lot of us on these boards know much about them. But keep in mind the plaintiff has to get a judgment first... And that hasn't happened yet and it may not happen if you play your cards correctly. If there's a request to produce, ya gotta produce documents, say you don't have 'em, or object (for good cause) to producing them. Keep in mind that in order to not be on the wrong end of a motion for summary judgment you should be doing some requests of your own ... interrogatories, requests to produce, and then perhaps requests for admissions.
Do I have a valid defense in that the statute of limitations in the state the account was opened in (TX) lapsed in November of 2006??? They are suing me in NJ..
Were you still living in TX in November of '06? If so, you need to check NJ case law to see if statutes that expire elsewhere have been deemed to have been revived by moving to the state. If not, it's probably unlikely that you will be able to use the SOL defense of another state just because that was where the account was opened. But what about the choice-of-law state of the agreement (South Dakota?)? Would arguing for its SOL help you or hurt you?
I moved to NJ from TX in May of 2006...prior to that, I was a TX resident for 14 years. SD has the same SOL as NJ - 6 years....
