I'm being sued by a creditor...help

[tj2g]

What is the name of your state? Texas
One of my creditors filed a claim with the National Arbitration Forum and won a judgement. They are now filing a lawsuit to "confirm arbitration award" locally. This is one of my credit card accounts so yes there was/is a balance, I can't contest that. I am currently working with a debt settlement company and the creditor is aware of this. Here's my question(s): do I need to do anything to answer this?; the county this was filed in is NOT my county- why?; what could happen if I do nothing and let the default judgement be awarded? Thank you in advance for any assistance here.

[racer72]

Before anyone can answer any question for you, one must be answered. Did you agree to the arbirtration with NAF? NAF is not a court of law and judgment granted through them do not have the same weight as a judgment granted through a court of law.

[Gregeney]

Assuming that this is a completely valid debt, all you could do is delay the Judgment against you. Unless, of course, you satisfy the debt or file a bankruptcy.

If they obtain that Judgment, they could garnish your bank account.

[racer72]

Originally Posted by Gregeney

If they obtain that Judgment, they could garnish your wages

Please do not reply unless you know the specifics of each state's laws. 5 seconds on Google whould have shown that the state of Texas does not allow the garnishment of wages except for child support.

[tj2g]

Originally Posted by racer72

Before anyone can answer any question for you, one must be answered. Did you agree to the arbirtration with NAF? NAF is not a court of law and judgment granted through them do not have the same weight as a judgment granted through a court of law.

Not exactly sure what you mean by "agree to". We were advised that because like you said NAF is not a court of law, all this did was to validate the debt, which we could not contest, and it was not the end of the world. But the creditor is now taking that judgement/validation and pursuing it in a local court with the NAF judgement as "exhibit A". How do I respond to this? And more pressing question is how can I find out more about the "error" in the county it is filed in. The law office that filed this is in Dallas county, I live in Denton county, but the suit was filed in Collin county. I dont get it, any thoughts? Does this even matter?

[Gregeney]

Originally Posted by racer72

Please do not reply unless you know the specifics of each state's laws. 5 seconds on Google whould have shown that the state of Texas does not allow the garnishment of wages except for child support.

You are, of course, correct. My apologies. I will edit my post to remove reference to wage garnishment.

[Ladynred]

You can object to their motion to confirm the arbitration award, but be prepared with some valid arguments as to WHY it should not be turned into a judgment. One thought comes to mind - incorrect venue.

There is no 'agreeing' or disagreeing for that matter to an NAF arbitration - you are quite literally screwed from day one - 99.9% of all arbitrations like this are found AGAINST the consumer - and in far too many cases for a debt that isn't even valid - beyond the SOL, and even included in bankruptcy. The time to fight this would have been when it first went to the NAF - and you would need a good lawyer to fight it. Creditors pay big bucks to make sure they win and you lose !

WHEN did this debt first go delinquent ?
If it was more than 4 years ago, then you can argue that the SOL has expired.