out of court

What is the name of your state?washington
I was served court papers for an outstanding debt. the attorney said to contact them in writing. what should I tell them to keep it out of court?

Your letter could state:

Please find enclosed requested payment.

Thank you and sorry for the inconvienance.

(don't forget to include the payment)

Sign, seal and deliver. (include postage stamp)

How old is the debt? What is it for? Where was the debt incurred? Who is it from (cc, CA, etc)?

Washington. It was an outstanding electric bill from a previous residence. We do not contest the bill, we just want to know what reasonable steps we need to take to settle it out of court. The bill is $684 not including about $400 in collection/attorney fees.

Offer to make payments? I'd question the collection fees... that's a bit steep don't you think? Are they court papers or just a nasty letter from an attorney??? If it's just an attorney letter, you may still have some leverage for a payment plan. (even a court would allow that)

See if you can negotiate for the amount of the actual bill by offering to make it a quick payoff (say a few months time) in lieu of them dropping the collection fee. And it's good that this is all in writing...better for both of you, but remember signing anything is a commitment to what you sign, so make sure the terms are what you want or can handle before taking that step. I think if you offer to pay the old balance quickly, as a good faith effort, they may void the collection fee or at least reduce it.

Thanks!

They have accepted reasonable payments. No luck on the steep fees though. At least it's not going to court!