M
Makum Pay
Guest
To motion or not to motion...
What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? FL
I go to pretrial conference on Monday. I'm being sued for non-payment of a debt. The suit alleges I still owe $1100. It was filed last month, but using records from January (these records do not reflect payments that had been made during Feb/Mar time period (so the "actual" amount they should be suing for is only $900). Secondly, I have discovered that they are charging interest and finance charges that they never disclosed or received my written authorization for as required by the Fed. Trade Commission/Truth in Lending Act. When those charges are removed, I owe them $200. My questions are these...
First, does their case have merit since it was filed with an incorrect amount to begin with; even their own records show an amount that is different from what they filed for. Based on the information presented above, is it possible the suit could be dismissed at pretrial, or is the judge likely to send it to trial with a modified amount?
Secondly, responding to the suit has cost me hours and hours of time away from working on my business...35 hours at last count (over this paltry sum). Also, process for this suit was served on my wife at the residence of one of our business clients leading to embarassment and loss of respect, potentially significant loss of income. Is there some manner of suit that I can file to recover these (and possibly punitive) costs? Would this be a separate suit, or would it be a "continuation of the present action"? If it's a continuation of the existing action, I have to file the countersuit by TOMORROW...
Third, if I want to claim that I only owe the $200, using the violation of federal statutes as the defense, do I need to file a counter-suit for the difference between this amount and the amount they are suing me for, or just leave that determination to the judge?
BTW, I have offered to settle this case TWICE...once for the $900, paid "when I could pay it" (as I was paying the debt before), and again for the $200, which I offered them immediately. They turned town both settlement offers even though I informed them (perhaps stupidly) that they didn't have a case and showing them exactly why.
I have kept exceptional records of every activity I have undertaken regarding this matter; likewise, I have conclusive documentary evidence that shows not only that they did not inform me of the interest/finance charges, but that they had every opportunity to do so (on their sales forms) and failed to fill out the required information. Copies of these forms have been provided to me TWICE by the company's attorney. The second time was in response to my Discovery Motion (so I am sure they have nothing with which to defend against this charge).
Any advice or opinions would be appreciated, especially if it comes with reference material (links, etc.) I can follow to aid in my pursuit.
I'm going to get these corporate *******s who use the law only when it's convenient to them to beat customers over the head, but who ignore it when it is inconvenient or doesn't suit them!
Thank you for responses.
***This question has been answered satisfactorily; thank you. Still looking for answers regarding the subsequent posts.***
What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? FL
I go to pretrial conference on Monday. I'm being sued for non-payment of a debt. The suit alleges I still owe $1100. It was filed last month, but using records from January (these records do not reflect payments that had been made during Feb/Mar time period (so the "actual" amount they should be suing for is only $900). Secondly, I have discovered that they are charging interest and finance charges that they never disclosed or received my written authorization for as required by the Fed. Trade Commission/Truth in Lending Act. When those charges are removed, I owe them $200. My questions are these...
First, does their case have merit since it was filed with an incorrect amount to begin with; even their own records show an amount that is different from what they filed for. Based on the information presented above, is it possible the suit could be dismissed at pretrial, or is the judge likely to send it to trial with a modified amount?
Secondly, responding to the suit has cost me hours and hours of time away from working on my business...35 hours at last count (over this paltry sum). Also, process for this suit was served on my wife at the residence of one of our business clients leading to embarassment and loss of respect, potentially significant loss of income. Is there some manner of suit that I can file to recover these (and possibly punitive) costs? Would this be a separate suit, or would it be a "continuation of the present action"? If it's a continuation of the existing action, I have to file the countersuit by TOMORROW...
Third, if I want to claim that I only owe the $200, using the violation of federal statutes as the defense, do I need to file a counter-suit for the difference between this amount and the amount they are suing me for, or just leave that determination to the judge?
BTW, I have offered to settle this case TWICE...once for the $900, paid "when I could pay it" (as I was paying the debt before), and again for the $200, which I offered them immediately. They turned town both settlement offers even though I informed them (perhaps stupidly) that they didn't have a case and showing them exactly why.
I have kept exceptional records of every activity I have undertaken regarding this matter; likewise, I have conclusive documentary evidence that shows not only that they did not inform me of the interest/finance charges, but that they had every opportunity to do so (on their sales forms) and failed to fill out the required information. Copies of these forms have been provided to me TWICE by the company's attorney. The second time was in response to my Discovery Motion (so I am sure they have nothing with which to defend against this charge).
Any advice or opinions would be appreciated, especially if it comes with reference material (links, etc.) I can follow to aid in my pursuit.
I'm going to get these corporate *******s who use the law only when it's convenient to them to beat customers over the head, but who ignore it when it is inconvenient or doesn't suit them!
Thank you for responses.
***This question has been answered satisfactorily; thank you. Still looking for answers regarding the subsequent posts.***
Last edited: