I was served a summons today (or actually my daughter was as I was not at home) from a collection agency on an old account. I am not sure what I am suppose to do. The date on it was January 14, 2002. Why am I just being served today? Date filed is also Jan. 14, 2002. It says I must respond within 20 days. How can I do that since it was almost 4 months ago? It says if I don't respond they will get a default judgement. But since I wasn't served until now and it has been long past the 20 days, does that mean they already have a default judgement against me? Any advice on what I should do would be appreciated. I have never had a lawsuit or judgement brought against me so I don't know where to begin. I want to take care of this account so that my wages are not garnished if they get a judgement. Do I contact the CA?
No, contact the court. Ask for a copy of the file, and see what is going on. Also tell them you just now got the summons. Something fishy going on here.
