First off, I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. Second, I have two judgments listed on my credit reports. They are both from the same company. One judgement I assumed to be the attorney's fees and the other I assumed to be the amount I was being sued for. Since I moved from the address where the lawsuit initiated I never received any papers regarding the judgment. I know it was a default judgment because I did not attend court. I sent a letter to the court to have them send me a copy of both judgments. They were only able to find one and they sent me the copy. It is for the lesser amount. I have disputed both of these judgments a number of times and they have always been verified. I am quite unsure what I should do next as I am wary of sending any kind of letter to the cra's that may imply the judgments are valid. Please advise.
Are the judgments paid or unpaid? What was the actual date of each judgment? Which reports are these on? What state are you in? How were you served?
The judgements are unpaid. The date of each judgement was 3/2000. They are on all reports except Tu is only reporting one (the one the courthouse has a record of). I was in Maryland when the judgments were issued. I am now in New York. Don't remember how or if I was served and the copy of the judgment did not specify this information.
OK, I can answer the part about the credit reporting with a degree of accuracy. Since it incolves two states, it is a little complex. However, unpaid judgments can be reported until the statute of limitations has expired. In NY it is 20 years. In MD it is 12 yrs. So generally speaking, I would say they can be reported for the next 12 years. Unless you can find some minute detail in the credit report that is incorrect, and dispute that, it will be difficult to get it removed, IMO. Don't send them anything. Get all your old addresses off your reports, wait a while and dispute some little detail. IMO, your bigger concern should be that these judgments are still enforceable. Don't keep your money in the bank. If you own real estate, check for liens. If you weren't served, you can probably get these judgments vacated. If you were served, keep a very low profile if you don't want to pay these. If will mean doing without credit for the next 10 years. Any activity on your credit report will probably stir this up and you will have someone after you.
On the one the court was unable to locate, I would send a procedural request the the CRA's. Sometimes this will kick them back into investigation and/or nudge a deletion. Good luck! L
I guess my question is: Waht do I do about the judgment that is listed with the higher amount on my credit report ($1100.). This is the one the court house did not find. Also, how can I get a judgment for attorney's fees ($900.00) without a judgment for the lawsuit itself. The judgment for the attorney's fees is the one that the courthouse has a record of. One thing does strike me as strange. I had always assumed that these were two seperate judgements as the first four numbers on each were different but the last four or five numbers were the same. However, when I received a copy of the judgement the number on record is only the last four or five numbers which is the same for both judgments listed on my credit reports. Which means to me, if this is the actual judgment number there would be two different numbers if there were two seperate judgments. I think perhaps there was only one judgment the one on file with the courthouse and I have no idea where the larger one came from. Is this confusing enough?
Yes, LOL. Do you have docket numbers? The reason I asked which reports it is on is that TU usually lists the docket numbers.
poke around here and see if you can find anything. Sounds like it has been archived. That doesn't mean it isn't there. http://www.publicrecordsinfo.com/court_records/maryland_court_records.htm
Unpaid judgments are reported for 7 years on your credit report.IF the SOL on judgments in your State (where it was filed) is LESS than 7 years, that is how long they will be on your report.They do NOT stay on your report longer than 7 years. As to the duplicate entry dates and different amounts.It is the SAME judgment, however when the judgent is certified and filed as a property lien in the County where you have (or had) real estate, it was entered with the additional costs (legal fees) included. You can dispute the later entry as a duplication with the CRA's.
Hi. I have a quick question. If the judgment can only stay on your credit report for 7 years (even if the SOL is 20?), can you request to the CRA's to remove the item when the 7 years is up? We would have 3 more months left if this is the case.
Re: Re: Judgment Question I would not request anything at this point. The judgment can be renewed and the renewal can be listed for another 7 years.
