being sued by Capital One

You have several options, becuase you indicated the claim is legit, one suggestion would be to contact the attorney and offer a lump sum % reduced settlement. IMHO, the attorney would rather pocket some quick cash, then spend hours chasing down the money. Ethically they are obligated to present any offer to their client. Worst case, you could stipulate to the judgment and request an installment payment plan to repay the entire debt, or if you have the money, you could make a full offer conditioned upon the filing of a dismissal w/prejudice. I just helped a client settle an old Cap 1 balance for 50% a few months ago, bal was 6,000 they accepted 3,000 lump. Jail is really not an option unless at some point post judgment the court orders a creditors exam whereby they order you to court along with a list of stuff you're ordered to bring including bank account #'s, employer info etc...If you fail to show up for that the judge would typically issue a bench warrant for your arrest. At that point usually they will not send a car out to get you but if you ever get a speeding ticket for example where they run your record and find the warrant...your off to the can and eventually get the pleasure of explaining to the judge why you didn't show up for the creditors exam...Most people show up for those with nothing, some have actually nothing left...There is always time to negiotiate throughout during and after the proceedings...Your best shot is now, I'd simply make an offer, starting low obviously gets better odds...Then come up if necessary...

What you need to do with Cap One is elect arbitration. Check out the forums at creditinfocenter dot com. It's the best strategy for stopping a creditor's lawsuit dead in its tracks.