Being sued by Citibank

Hang in there someone will be along to answer you as soon as they are available. :)

welcome to the forums. i myself was sued by citibank, so welcome to the club. so anyway i know some are getting settlements from citi but i had absolutely no luck whatsoever. have you talked to them scince you recieved the letter? see if its possible to get something settled before the hearing. if not, (you should have a attorney) i went without one i couldnt afford it. but be sure you show up to the hearing with your monthly bills what you are doing, and how you are trying. usually(atleast in my case) the judge was very understanding and will work something out with you that you CAN do. in my case it was a lein on my home. good luck im sureothers will chime in with other advice. hang in there

What state are you in? I know in Pennsylvania you get 20 days to respond. 10 days just doesn't sound right. Maybe I'm wrong though. Make sure no matter what you show up to court. I made the mistake of not doing that and ended up screwed.

Just got off the phone with the atty office. She was quick to discuss payment arrangments and agreed to the amount I proposed.

What it sounds like to me is that the suit is filed, and regardless of any arrangements, there's going to be a judgment recorded until the debt is paid off. The only question is whether or not it's worth any time or emotional energy to ask for a court date to ... say yes, the info they have is correct, and I owe it.

So, waiting on the papers to come from their office, and guess we'll go from there.

so have you gotten served with papers from the actual court? or just from them? there is a difference. one from the court will state your hearing date and time this means it has been filed and scheduled. if you havent recieved this yet get back to us, they may be scaring you into thinking they have started so that you pay up.

These were actual papers, served by a sheriff, from city court. They demand an "answer" within 10 days. No dates are given; what I was told was that would happen if I submitted an answer to the clerk. Maybe it's our odd court system here in Louisiana or something.

Make sure you answer the summons, it's very easy to do. Do not admit to anything on the answer. Did they provide a contract you had with them or anything in writing saying you agreed to pay this amount. Do not assume you are going to lose and do nothing, if you do you will get a judgement against you for the full amount. Make sure you get any settlement in writing.

see i dont understand this one, because the only time i recieved a letter like that it was from my court house telling me when to appear and who was suing me. Im bumping ya up maybe someone else can help you better. what are they asking you for to respond in 10 days? a guilty or non guilty plea? if you want to take it to court? what are they asking for? im really confused about this one

Here's the thing: It's a summons and a complaint with a notice to appear for a hearing that is essentially scheduled by the plaintiff. This is a civil matter, not criminal so there is no discussion regarding guilty or not guilty. At that hearing the Plaintiff will attempt to have a Judgment entered either by default, (if the defendant does not show up), or by consent, most Plaintiff's atty's will talk to people out in the hallway (or over the phone pre hearing)and attempt to get an agreement that you owe their $ figure and to just sign a Judgment. Or in the alternative, try to settle it out for a lump sum pre Judgment...Answering the complaint is simply responding to their numbered allegations Admit, deny, or neither admit nor deny and leave Plaintiff to their proofs. The case format itself is simple enough and most of these guys just use standard preprinted forms cause they are easy to fill to fill out. Technically one could just type up their own form in a similar format such as:


Court of last resort 10th district

Judge Brown
Case No.: 0911011


Cap 1 Plaintiff

v.


Broke Joe

Plaintiff atty info Defendant info
Paper pusher lane 232 Broke Joe
Debt city 123 Poor street
PH Ph#

Defendant's Answer to Complaint

1. deny

2. deny


Wherefore defendant asks for dismissal. Signature....

Answer gets filed with the court, a copy sent to Plaintiff then attend the hearing...

I can't get into the logistics of the entire scenario, as they vary from place to place state to state.. but in my area a Defendant can also file a motion for an installment plan, upon an amount they can pay, and go from there. Issues arise when interest is accruing on the unpaid balance...The guy from this morning was paying 150 a month with 13% interest wherein he'd be paying for approx 46 months to payoff...I would suggest attending court to make sure the numbers match up rather than defaulting for some amount which may or may not be correct...I was defending a case this morning involving Cap 1, A post Judgment hearing from a 2007 Judgment where a payment plan had been set up in 2009 and even the plaintiff's atty suggested a LUMP payoff was still a possibility...They offered 55% and we all agreed they take less based upon the end of the month thing...

but he said there is no date? i know its a civil not criminal matter, but i dont understand why they would send him a letter that did not have a date and time to appear. like i said when i got served it had date, and time to appear in court.

In Ohio when I was served by HSBC, it care certified by USPS and the document had the courts time stamp on it. I was given 28 days to respond. You need to find an attorney, this docuement might have been sent to you to scare you into thinking your being sued or it was sent saying, this is what could happen it you do not settle. Also, if there is a clerks office listed call them and ask them to verify the validity and information (10 days to respond) contained in the docuement.

Also,ask the court for a continuance if a hearing is set. They may have you put it to paper and pay a small fee, but in the body of the request explain you need a continuance in order to get your finances in order, your working with a debt relief company, etc. In Cleveland most if not all civil coninuances are granted anyway from 60 - 90 days. But, please be sure you read and follow the proceedures thoroughly. If you miss something by one day, the court./judge may not like that.

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