dominion law associates - anyone have any information on dominion law associates?

Excellent! Plus, if it causes you problems paying rent and getting a late fee, you can add those damages to an FDCPA lawsuit. The FDCPA also has provisions for court costs and attorney fees, so your lawyer isn't quite *free*, he will be paid by Dominion. And he will also teach them that a lawyer is supposed to KNOW and FOLLOW the LAW!! (Funny how these collection agency "law firms" seem to have slept during the class about the FDCPA - one of the simplest laws ever written, methinks...)

Guest above - if you are sure you never opened the account then don't pay them a dime! Let them sue! File a Motion for Discovery which requires them to prove it is yours, and if they cannot, then bye bye lawsuit! Then you can turn around and countersue them for persecuting you for a debt that isn't yours!

I have a read ALL of the above stories and can't believe that these people are cruel. They garnished my wages when I was making a payment of $100 a month and told me that was not enough and took over $600 per month from me for 5 months. I was behind on all of my bills and still have not caught up. I have another account with them in which I made arrangements to pay them $150.00 per month. They told me that I need to increase IF I could in 6 months, but I told them that was all that I could afford right now. I am so affraid of what they might do...Can someone help me??? I am right the same area where these people are located.

First I would like to thank all of you for writting your letters it helps to know I am not alone. We also got a letter from this company. In it they say "as you are aware a judgment has been enter against you in the above matter. which back in Dec, Capitol one did get a judgment against us. now they are saying that they are going to issue a summons for us to appear in court to answer question regarding are assets which I thought we covered the first time with capital one Does anyone have and Idea if this is legal

Call your county court and verify with them.

they are greedddy people.... cant even log into their site to pay but by god they call u an demand their money

They will take you to court. I have been sued by them 2 times. The first time they tried to colect a grand from me. Managed to get about three hundred but the bank made them put back half. That screwed up my bank account now that is closed. They put out a lien for any personal property that I might own. I don't have any so that didn't worry me. Now they are sueing me again for seven hundred. Collection agencies will sue you and a judge will grant them judgement.

Damn, but you're negative this evening.

Yes, some collection agencies will sue, given the opportunity. And yes, a judge will grant them a default judgement if you don't appear. Probably grant a judgement anyway, if you take no steps to defend yourself against the jackals. So... What's the solution?

Is simple. Really.

Defend yourself! Yes, it's a scary time. And yes, it's complicated. But that's why we're here. That's the reason this community exists. We help people deal with collection agencies every day. For free. And a lot of those folks win in court, if it even goes that far.

If you want to post up some details of the troubles you're having, please do. We'll help you however we can. Start a new thread, and let 'er rip.

I got a letter from Dominion Associates recently and yes, I was initially afraid. But Unclewulf is absolutely correct: defend yourself. I decided I could sit and do nothing and wait for them to seek a judgement, or I could act.

So I did my homework. I sent them a letter asking them to validate the debt, and waited for them to reply. In the meantime, they did send me a letter asking to set up a payment plan, which I ignored.

The reason I ignored this letter was because, in the course of my research, I found out that open-ended debts (including credit card debts) have a statute of limitations, which varies from state to state. As it turns out, Virginia has a pretty lenient code for consumers, which sets that time as three years from the last date of payment. However, if a consumer makes a payment on the debt, or even acknowledges that they owe it, it will start the clock running from zero and give the debt collector a great position, from which they can seek a judgement. Dominion Associates isn't doing you any favors by trying to "work" with you to set up a payment plan - they want you to be scared, unaware of your rights and willing to make a monthly payment so that you forfeit your right to contest a time-barred debt.

So if you get a letter from these people, make them validate the debt and prove that it is not past the statute of limitations, and do not claim that you owe the debt until it is clear that you have no other recourse. It is even possible that they cannot properly validate the debt, as all I received was a letter from them with the amount owed, the account number, what the debt was for, etc.

Also, treat them as a bill collector, and do not speak with them on the phone. Having done my homework, I will say that there is no reason ever to deal with a debt collector on the phone. They are fishing for you to say something they could use when seeking a judgement - don't provide them with the ammunition. Deal with them via certified mail and if you aren't comfortable with the process get a lawyer to do it for you.

Hope this helps!

Hi, got a DLA notice today myself! Ooooooooh I'm sooooo scared! It's a 'LAW FIRM' !! I'm under my bed now, shaking!.....NOT.

I've heard two things in this thread about statutes on credit card debt in Virginia that are conflicting.

One says the clock starts ticking when the original creditor charges off the debt.

The other stated the clock starts ticking the date of last payment by the consumer, I'm assuming, to the creditor.

Does anyone know definitively on this what it is?

Thanks in advance;

This website for a reputable Consumer Law Agency here in Virginia has this on their website.

http://www.theconsumerlawgroup.com/f...-on-a-debt.cfm

Thanks, that was very helpful. So by that either last payment or charge/usage of the card. The Judgment time period is brutal though at 10 years, then renewable to 20. So...if they get a judgment locked in on your before that 3 year period they can keep coming at you through the courts, garnishments etc. I'm assuming,

THESE PEOPLE REPRESENT CAPITAL ONE CREDIT CARD AND THEY HAD ME SERVED WITH A SUMMONS (BY THE LOCAL SHERRIFFS DEPT) TO APPEAR IN COURT, THE MAN SERVING IT SAID THAT FROM THE PAPER WORK IT WAS A 'CIVIAL SUMMONS' AND THAT I WAS BEING SUED IN (VIA-THRU MY LOCAL COUNTY COURTS) once they get you they most always win, if you have alot of credit card debt you may want to look into chapter 7 bankruptcy, or 13 if you intend on paying any back,
they may be able to garnish your wages, or i have heard stories of freezing your bank accts, keep your money out of your accts if possible,

And you know this how? I personally wouldn't file for bankruptcy until it was the absolute last resort.

If they haven't validated the debt and they are sending you a summons, my next move would be to file a motion of discovery and make them validate the debt. They may be pursuing this without the required validation, or want you to pay a time-barred debt (which is the last thing you want to do). Make them validate the debt properly. If they can't, file a motion with the court to dismiss based on the fact that they cannot do so. If you aren't comfortable with doing this, get a lawyer.

But if you throw in the towel without doing any work, then of course they'll win.

I am also battling this company. They filed an action in VIrginia Court and when I appeared at the status hearing and disputed this claim a court date was set. Before I was scheduled to file an answer, they made a motion to the court for a nonsuit. They advised that I did not have to appear on the scheduled court date, however, I did so anyway, in order to obtain a copy of the order. Now, almost a month later, they are starting to call me again on the phone. Something needs to be done against this company.

Dominion served me a warrant of debt. I sent a DV immediately after receiving the warrant. This was my first encounter with them. The didn't provide the DV. I appearded in court and the judge order a bill of particulars. They didn't provide that either. Going back to court soon, we will see the out come. Have filed a complaint with the FTC.

Wow this is unreal, I also rec'd a letter from Dominion Law Associates, I had been trying to get in touch with them regarding a credit card bill in the amount of 2,000 and something. I faxed my account numbers to them, but I am going to the bank to close my accounts today after reading all of this. I am about to file bankruptcy.