Attorney called - what to do?

You did not mention what state you live in? This is important because each state has different laws for collecting debt. And is this the same state in which the debt was orginated in, this information would be important to know due to the statute of limitations (aka sol). Do not give them any information until you have educated yourself.

 

Look for the usual advice given to new people.

My guess is that your debt is close to becoming older than the statue of limitations, if it hasn't already. The attorney who called you probably wants to: a) get your money or b) get you to do something that will reset the date used to determine if it's "out of statute." If (b) happens, the attorney now has a whole new period of time in which to pester you.

(this isn't legal advice...) Unless you can pay all of it, or settle for some other amout that you can pay, don't pay or promise to pay anything. If it's still within the statute of limitations, they could file suit and "serve you papers." But, I don't see how it could be in "litigation" unless they've already filed suit and served you the papers (so it sounds like the attorney is no more "legal minded" than you are).

You could send them a letter that prevents them from calling you or your husband and requests that all subsequent correspondence be made through the mail. After that, they couldn't call your husband at work. But the other side of that might be that the next correspondence you receive is a summons to appear in court.

In any case, they have you in their sights so it's time to start doing some homework or start calling around and interviewing some lawyers.

 

A few questions about your situation:

1) Exactly how old is this debt? What are the dates of "First Deliquency", have you reviewed the information as it reads on your credit reports? You need to know this to judge where you stand relative to the Statute of Limitations for collection of debt (in your state).

2) Did this "guy" claim he was an attorney? It is illegal to represent yourself as an attorney, unless you are one.

3) When was it, how long ago, did you receive any notification regarding collection activity for this debt? i.e. how much previous notification have you received from the debt collector(s)?

4) Was any settlement offered?

This attorneys' office is using aggressive tactics which are borderline to the legal requirements, but they can do the actions you have detailed.

As previously posted, the best advice is to retain an attorney for representation. Check with your state's Bar Association for attorneys in your area that specialize in this field.

 

An you very well may not. Unless there is a Choice of Law provision in the contract, the North Carolina Statute of Limitations is 3 or 4 years depending on the type of debt. If you are beyond that, and there is no choice of law provision, his Out of SOL claim makes him SOL (in a different sense)

FDCPA violation #1 - it isn't "in litigation" until papers are served.

If it's your husband's debt then they can't take you to Court (also called "sue you") unless you live in a Community property State, which neither NC nor MN is. Can they sue him? Yes, but the Statute of Limitations I mentioned above is an Affirmative Defense if they do. Do they have a legal "right" to call him at work? Nowhere in the Constitution is the right to call anyone anywhere listed as "right". Does he have the "privilege" of calling your husband at work? Only if e has the phone number and your husband AND your husband's employer allow it.

If the delinquency started in 2002 they should fall off the credit report late this year or early next, depending on when the actual defaults began.

Buried in the archives of CN are some essays I wrote several years ago - you might want to search for them and read them. They are titled

Understanding the Collection Agency
Now the Fun starts - They have a Lawyer

On my board, Debtorboards, I have collected these essays and many more and have put them all in one place. I have called the collection the Flyingifr Method of Aggressive Credit Repair. In addition to the above essays, you might want to also read (in the method - they didn't get to CN):

Flyingifr on Venue
Understanding the Statute of Limitations
Chain of Custody - the Junk Debt Buyer's Achilles Heel
Can I Tape Record a Call Without the Other Side Knowing?

BTW, since the caller identified himself as calling "from "so-n-so" attorney's office" he did NOT say he is an attorney, so no violation there.

 

Smart move, here's an article that may help:

http://www.bankrate.com/nltrack/new...b1.asp?ec_id=brmint_ns_weeklyroundup_20070629

Good Luck!

 

Another good article:

http://www.bankrate.com/nltrack/new...c1.asp?ec_id=brmint_ns_weeklyroundup_20070629