civil judgement

i just received a notice of motion for entry of judgement by default from a debt that i had back in 1994. the law firm has almost doubled the original debt amount (from $3500 to $6300) i have settled other debts from the same year (1994) what can i do to stop this judgement from going on my credit report, what are my options for handling this situation?

[HomeGuru]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face=" Arial, Verdana, Helvetica">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by rolee:
i just received a notice of motion for entry of judgement by default from a debt that i had back in 1994. the law firm has almost doubled the original debt amount (from $3500 to $6300) i have settled other debts from the same year (1994) what can i do to stop this judgement from going on my credit report, what are my options for handling this situation? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Pay the amount due.

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally posted by rolee
i just received a notice of motion for entry of judgement by default from a debt that i had back in 1994. the law firm has almost doubled the original debt amount (from $3500 to $6300) i have settled other debts from the same year (1994) what can i do to stop this judgement from going on my credit report, what are my options for handling this situation?

My response:

The amount of the default judgment comprises the principle amount, plus interest, court costs and attorney fees . . . that's why it's nearly doubled.

You need to immediately file a Motion to Set Aside Default Judgment. You'll need to explain in your papers why you allowed the action to move all the way to "Default" before you finally took action; e.g., since you were served with the original Summons and Complaint, why did you fail to properly respond to those papers?

If the court accepts your excuse(s), then the court will set the Default aside, and then allow you to properly respond to the Complaint, so that you can plead any defenses that you might have to the action; e.g., Statute of Limitations.

IAAL