Lawsuit

[Zigner]

Then, frankly, there's not much of a reason to even bother filing a response. I would suggest that you speak with the law firm about entering in to some sort of settlement whereby you agree to a judgment being requested only if you fail to abide by the terms of the settlement. That way, so long as you make the agreed-upon payments, there will be no judgment against you.

 

[quincy]

How much is the debt?

It is generally best to try to avoid the entry of a judgment, if you can reach a satisfactory settlement.

 

[adjusterjack]

I’m back to square one. I was just going to file an answer acknowledging that I’m aware of the debt and agree that its true.

That's a bad idea. I agree with the other responses that having a judgment against you is a bad thing.

I suggest you file your answer with a denial of one or more of the allegations. All you need is one denial to put the matter before the court and you can deny anything that you aren't sure of. For example if the complaint says you owe $13,000 and you think it was $12,000, just deny that allegation. You don't have to explain that denial. That's for later. Once you file the answer with one or more denials you'll have plenty of time to work with the attorney on a payment plan and a stipulation for dismissal in exchange for the agreement.

Here are some resources about answering a complaint:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=california+answer+to+complaint+in+debt&t=h_&ia=web

 

[quincy]

That's a bad idea. I agree with the other responses that having a judgment against you is a bad thing.

I suggest you file your answer with a denial of one or more of the allegations. All you need is one denial to put the matter before the court and you can deny anything that you aren't sure of. For example if the complaint says you owe $13,000 and you think it was $12,000, just deny that allegation. You don't have to explain that denial. That's for later. Once you file the answer with one or more denials you'll have plenty of time to work with the attorney on a payment plan and a stipulation for dismissal in exchange for the agreement.

Here are some resources about answering a complaint:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=california+answer+to+complaint+in+debt&t=h_&ia=web

"Neither admit nor deny" is a proper response if there is some doubt.

Don't "deny" what you know is provably true. Don't "admit" what you know is possibly false.

In other words, don't lie.