Remove Default Judgement - No Service

[ddeveaux]

State of New Jersey

Found out from credit report that I have a default judgement against me in NJ. Two issues:

1. There was no service for the court appearance. I had moved to GA 2 years earlier. Called plaintiff today and they said no mail was returned to them though they acknowledge everything was sent to my old NJ address. (I guess new tenant just threw it out!). Can I file a motion to remove this for no service? How is that done?

2. The case was an unpaid medical bill my then girlfriend, now wife had. I don't see how they can sue me for that to begin with. Bill was from 2005. We were living together but not married till Oct 2006. Plaintiff said my girlfriend checked off "spouse/partner" on emergency contact form for me in '05. By "partner" she didn't mean legally though. Can I get the suit against me thrown out for no standing? Plaintiff (dr office) said that since we are now married I'm liable. I don't think that's accurate.

Thanks for any help! I just asked for a copy of complaint today but it's for $100 in unpaid bills my "now spouse" had.What is the name of your state?

 

[seniorjudge]

1. There was no service for the court appearance. I had moved to GA 2 years earlier. Called plaintiff today and they said no mail was returned to them though they acknowledge everything was sent to my old NJ address. (I guess new tenant just threw it out!). Can I file a motion to remove this for no service? How is that done?

A: If you did not give the creditor your new address, then the service was probably good.



2. The case was an unpaid medical bill my then girlfriend, now wife had. I don't see how they can sue me for that to begin with. Bill was from 2005. We were living together but not married till Oct 2006. Plaintiff said my girlfriend checked off "spouse/partner" on emergency contact form for me in '05. By "partner" she didn't mean legally though. Can I get the suit against me thrown out for no standing? Plaintiff (dr office) said that since we are now married I'm liable. I don't think that's accurate.

A: Aha! Now this could be a defense. When you marry someone, that doesn't mean that her bills come with her. You will have to make a motion to the court to set aside the judgment since you never agreed to pay for anything (if that, in fact, is what happened). Before you do anything, though, get a copy of your entire file from the court.

 

[SHORTY LONG]

State of New Jersey

Found out from credit report that I have a default judgement against me in NJ. Two issues:

1. There was no service for the court appearance. I had moved to GA 2 years earlier. Called plaintiff today and they said no mail was returned to them though they acknowledge everything was sent to my old NJ address. (I guess new tenant just threw it out!). Can I file a motion to remove this for no service? How is that done?

2. The case was an unpaid medical bill my then girlfriend, now wife had. I don't see how they can sue me for that to begin with. Bill was from 2005. We were living together but not married till Oct 2006. Plaintiff said my girlfriend checked off "spouse/partner" on emergency contact form for me in '05. By "partner" she didn't mean legally though. Can I get the suit against me thrown out for no standing? Plaintiff (dr office) said that since we are now married I'm liable. I don't think that's accurate.

Thanks for any help! I just asked for a copy of complaint today but it's for $100 in unpaid bills my "now spouse" had.What is the name of your state?

If the Judgment is only for $100.00 then, ask yourself would it be worth it
to try and fight it or just pay it, and make SURE your Credit Report is cleared
of all traces of the Judgment.

Hopefully, other members will share their respective input as well.

 

[dcatz]

I come down somewhere between the two but leaning toward Shorty’s view.

I think you could successfully argue to vacate on the basis of defective service, but then you litigate the thing again. And if they think SJ’s position on liability is correct, they can sue your wife. She’s still within the SOL.

Seems like a lot of trouble for all concerned for $100.00. However, if you pay, your credit won’t be clear. It will still show the judgment but as paid. That could cost more than $100.00 in increased credit costs. I’d offer to pay despite having a chance of personally beating it, but I’d condition payment on a Stipulation vacating the judgment and dismissing the case. Then there’s no longer a record

 

[ddeveaux]

Stipulaing Judgment

I agree it's lot of work for $100. The other attorney said if I paid they mark judgement as "paid". Gee, thanks. So as far as getting a stipulation that they remove the judgement though, I get that before I pay? A letter that says "When we receive X we agree to do Y." Is it a legal document or just a "friendly letter".

I'm pretty sure I win based on comments here, but I just want it off my report. She probably owes the $100 so we'll just pay it.

 

[dcatz]

It’s a legal document, but a very simple one, that you all sign and they file with the court. It’s done in exchange for payment. If you have reservations about them doing it, get that in a letter and keep a copy of the signed Stipulation, assuming that you can get one.
The undersigned parties to the instant action stipulate and agree that the judgment entered herein on XXXX, 200X in favor of Plaintiff XXXX and against Defendant ddeveaux shall be and is vacated. The parties further stipulate and agree that the instant action shall be and is dismissed with prejudice.
Add signatures and dates. Your state may require that you repeat the same language as an Order for the judge’s signature.
If they won’t give it to you (and they don’t have to), you either pay and wait for it to drop off (I doubt that it would remain for years, if your credit is otherwise good), or you go to battle with them, which doesn’t seem as if it would be in anyone’s interest.

 

[ddeveaux]

Motion To Vacate Judgment

Regarding this, as I haven't been able to get a letter from Plaintiff yet, I planned to file a motion in the court to remove my name from lawsuit. This bill was incurred by my "then girlfriend, now wife" long before we were married. I'm named in suit as well because on her Personal Info form at Dr office, she checked "spouse/partner" for me. I guess Dr office meant "partner" as in the NJ civil union law, however she took it to just mean "boyfriend, friend, etc." As a result, Dr office thought we were legally joined. Since we were not, I do not think there is any basis for this to be on my credit report.

As far as filing motion, I have papers here, but is this A Motion To:
1. Amend Complaint?
2. Amend Judgment?
3. Vacate Default? (I thought this was it)

I default judgment was entered because there was no service. Neither of us had any idea this happened as we moved 2 years earlier and this evidently was not forwarded or returned to sender. The $$ is likely owed...but not by me! I just want judgment off my credit report.

Thanks!

 

[dcatz]

Vacate a Default - you were right.
'Tho, technically, the plaintiff could move to amend the judgment, removing you and leaving your wife, you're not getting any cooperation, and you might as well try to vacate. While that gives them the opportunity to start again, it doesn't appear that they're motivated.

 

[ddeveaux]

No Standing - Civil Suit?

Thanks for help on this. If judgment is vacated, which I filed last week, is there any case for me to sue the original plaintiff? They listed me in suit because I was listed as an Emergency contact on her original personal form. (Form filled out when you visit a doctor). Though I was her fiance at that time, she could have listed Bill Clinton there and he obviously wouldn't be liable. We are now married, but so what? I don't understand how you can just add the name from from to a lawsuit when she doesn't pay her bill. Doesn't there have to be a legal basis for including names as part of the suit.

My credit was hurt and, even if removed, it will take months for the default to come off. I spoke to office today about having them amend complaint and they said "no". Is there basis for a civil suit for my damages? I'd guess proving an amt would be difficult however.

 

[dcatz]

The answer is “no” here as well. If you’re going to do it (and it appears you’ve started), vacate the judgment. If successful, that starts things anew. Address the litigation that follows and prove you’re not liable. The problem of a judgment with your name on it goes away.

Recognize that assumes that they want to go through the whole thing again for $100. If they don’t, the whole problem is gone.

 

[ddeveaux]

Vacate Judgement

But is there any recourse for fact that I'm currently having to pay higher interest and getting credit rejections as a result of this judgement? That's what I meant by a civil action once the judgement is removed...some damage is already done and will continue for next few months.

 

[dcatz]

Still "no". There is going to be a sworn affidavit that the default judgment was based on good service. We've been over that. As a party to the action, they couldn't serve it themselves, and I see no basis for seeking damages from the server.

After the default judgment gets entered, they don't report it to the CRAs; the CRAs get that public record information directly from the courts. Everything looks *right* until you successfully have the judgment vacated. What is the basis for damages and who do you sue?

 

[ddeveaux]

Remove Default Judgment

I was suggesting suing plaintiff as they had no reason to list me on the original lawsuit. The original lawsuit was for non-payment of medical bills for Jane Smith. Jane Smith listed me as an emergency contact on her doctor's form, so the doctor filed suit against both of us. I'm claiming it was basically a frivolous suit against me since I've never seen that doctor at all. It's ok to just sue the emergency contact when the patient doesn't pay? Could have been the paperboy for all they knew.

My damages are any credit rejections and higher interest I'm paying now until the judgment is removed. I originally found out about judgment because my landlord did a credit check and charged an additional deposit because of this.

Not that it matters, but there was no service on this, though there is no way to prove it. The mail was never forwarded to us or returned to sender. New tenant must have thrown it away which is why I didn't respond initially.

 

[dcatz]

I followed the thread from the start and am aware of the reason for your dissatisfaction. I’m also aware of the prospective allegations. To the extent that it is explained in your posts, I understand what happened.

When you say there was no service, I also understand the point that you’re making. However, as explained previously, the court had reason to believe service had been made or a default would not have been entered.

Finally, I understand that there can be increased costs for the extension of credit, when there is a black mark on your credit report.

You asked if you had recourse in damages. My opinion was and is that you do not. I asked the basis for damages and who you would sue. It was not to instigate a discussion of error, which I realize you feel was made. It was an expression of an opinion that there was no breach of a legal duty owed to you such that you could identify culpable defendant(s), identify a breach and assert causally-related damages, all of which you will have to do. It’s a personal opinion and shouldn’t dissuade you from trying, if you wish.