Settlement offered after dismissal without prejudice
Date: Wed, 09/08/2010 - 18:13
I would really appreciate any help or advice here.
I've been unemployed since before graduating from college over two years ago. During college, I defaulted on a credit card with a $2,000 limit.
The original creditor was Bank of America, but it was taken over by Arrow Financial Services. Last July, I received a call from Arrow asking for the balance. I tried to make payment arrangements with them as I am still unemployed, but they said the balance had to be paid in full or they would take me to court. I told them I couldn't pay it in full.
I received a judgement a few weeks later from a police officer at my door. The lawyers representing Arrow were from the Apothaker firm. Scared and having no idea what to do, I contacted a debt lawyer who worked with me at a discount because I was unemployed.
In the copies of the papers my lawyer sent me, it says that he (my lawyer) received a call from the law office on September 29, 2009, at the close of business, saying that they were "going to dismiss the above captioned and fax a copy to me and the Court." He did not have a copy the morning of the court date (September 30, 2009) for preliminary objections and he presented himself for argument. My lawyer said that he requested that the Court enter the order without prejudice "as that is my [my lawyer's] understanding of how you were to dismiss the case."
So on September 30th, 2009, the Order of the Court was, as follows: Hereby granted and ordered that the Plaintiff's Complaint be stricken and dismissed without prejudice.
Now my lawyer made it clear to me that that meant they could come after me in the future but that they likelihood was minimal and they were still constrained by the applicable statute of limitations.
Well, a couple days ago in the mail, I received a settlement offer from Northland Group Inc. on behalf of Arrow. The "past due account balance" is $2,212.14 according to them (though last year when I received the judgment, it was $2,395.78. Northland is offering a settlement for $1,106.10.
They say unless I notify them within 30 days disputing the validity of the debt, they will consider it valid.
I'm still unemployed and I'm not back in school. I cannot afford to pay this balance and I also can't afford another $500 for a lawyer that I struggled to pay the first time. Do I send them a letter questioning the validity, perhaps with a copy of the Order of Court that it was previously dismissed without prejudice? Or is that worthless now? I'm not sure what to do and I'm scared and frustrated. Any assistance would be so greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
I've been unemployed since before graduating from college over two years ago. During college, I defaulted on a credit card with a $2,000 limit.
The original creditor was Bank of America, but it was taken over by Arrow Financial Services. Last July, I received a call from Arrow asking for the balance. I tried to make payment arrangements with them as I am still unemployed, but they said the balance had to be paid in full or they would take me to court. I told them I couldn't pay it in full.
I received a judgement a few weeks later from a police officer at my door. The lawyers representing Arrow were from the Apothaker firm. Scared and having no idea what to do, I contacted a debt lawyer who worked with me at a discount because I was unemployed.
In the copies of the papers my lawyer sent me, it says that he (my lawyer) received a call from the law office on September 29, 2009, at the close of business, saying that they were "going to dismiss the above captioned and fax a copy to me and the Court." He did not have a copy the morning of the court date (September 30, 2009) for preliminary objections and he presented himself for argument. My lawyer said that he requested that the Court enter the order without prejudice "as that is my [my lawyer's] understanding of how you were to dismiss the case."
So on September 30th, 2009, the Order of the Court was, as follows: Hereby granted and ordered that the Plaintiff's Complaint be stricken and dismissed without prejudice.
Now my lawyer made it clear to me that that meant they could come after me in the future but that they likelihood was minimal and they were still constrained by the applicable statute of limitations.
Well, a couple days ago in the mail, I received a settlement offer from Northland Group Inc. on behalf of Arrow. The "past due account balance" is $2,212.14 according to them (though last year when I received the judgment, it was $2,395.78. Northland is offering a settlement for $1,106.10.
They say unless I notify them within 30 days disputing the validity of the debt, they will consider it valid.
I'm still unemployed and I'm not back in school. I cannot afford to pay this balance and I also can't afford another $500 for a lawyer that I struggled to pay the first time. Do I send them a letter questioning the validity, perhaps with a copy of the Order of Court that it was previously dismissed without prejudice? Or is that worthless now? I'm not sure what to do and I'm scared and frustrated. Any assistance would be so greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Since it was dismissed without prejudice, they are free to colle
Since it was dismissed without prejudice, they are free to collect and file against you again. Not much an attorney can do. Get working quickly and get this paid.
Quote:Get working quickly and get this paid I wish it were
Quote:
Get working quickly and get this paid |
I wish it were as easy as that. Like I said, I'm now back in school and still unemployed. I've applied for multiple jobs but I haven't heard anything back yet. If I could pay it right now, I would.
Should I contact them to try and barter with them? Or if I don't respond is there a chance they'll come back with a smaller settlement offer? Right now the settlement offer is 50% of what they say is the current balance. Is it usual to get it down some more? I could probably beg and borrow a few hundred and I have a couple hundred saved. Has anyone dealt with Northland or Arrow before? I want to make sure that if I am able to settle with them, they won't be able to come after me again with the balance in the future.
