Summons Question

[dchase]

Hi. Last Friday (2/16/01), my wife was delivered a summons (and was named as the defendant) to appear in civil court regarding a car accident that she legitimately was not involved in (the accident took place 2/16/99). The name on the summons was close to hers, but not the same (which she didn't realize until after the summons deliverer had gone). I think this is a case of mistaken identity. She called the plaintiff's law firm that was listed on the summons. The plaintiff's lawyer told her that if she was indeed NOT the person who was involved in the car accident, then she could just ignore (throw away) the summons and be done with it. I realize that the lawyer she talked to does not have my wife's best interest in mind (as he works for the plaintiff, not her) and I was wondering if his advice to ignore the summons was the right thing to do? Instead of ignoring the summons, should we file a response? Any suggestions?

 

[dchase]

Idaho

Forgot to tell you the state in which I live: Idaho.

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

My response:

You need to call him back, perhaps to set up a short meeting to prove who your wife is, and to have him sign a Dismissal form to file with the court. Otherwise, a default could be taken against you - - despite the spelling error. Spelling errors are common and, theoretically, he could amend the Summons and Complaint to correct your wife's name, and then take her default.

If he's unwilling to voluntarily Dismiss the Complaint as against your wife, she'll need to immediately turn the papers over to your insurance company so that their defense attorneys can handle this in a formal manner.

Never, never, ignore a Summons and Complaint, even if it appears to be a mistake.

IAAL