It's Associate Civil court

If they try to introduce ANY affidavit object to it as being hearsay and that you want the person who signed the document to appear in court so that you can directly question this person.

Well, I know that they are going to use an affidavit. The petition includes an "affidavit in support of plaintiffs claim".

So, then do I tell the judge that the affidavit is hearsay and make my motion for discovery then?

Of course, by the time that you reply to this, I'll probably already have been to court.

I just hope that the judge decides to grant me my motion for discovery.

In researching case.net I'm seeing that 99% of the people are having judgements issued against them. Half of them are default. The only times that it shows that the cases have been dismissed were once for fraud , the rest are if the sheriff was unable to deliver the summons.

I'm going in to court hoping that the judge is in a good mood and will let me have my documentation that I'm asking for.

The clerk told me that I'd be able to talk to their lawyer today. I'm hoping that their lawyer gets a flat tire and can't make it to court today.

Oh, well. Life happens.

With all the bad stuff that I've heard regarding LVNV, I'm just not assuming that this debt is valid.

I just finished my last case in St. Louis County at Associate Civil court. It was my 3rd and I did not lose any of them. In each case they had an affidavit of debt, from JDB, Visa/MasterCard Agreement, supposedly from OC, and a statement of account, from the JDB.

I did not file an answer nor did I speak to the judge, but one time in 8 months. I was also pro se, no attorney. The one time I spoke with the judge I said the affidavit was hearsay and she said how do you know.

Here is what happened. The first month, I went in and sat through the reading of the docket. 99% of the people got a default judgment for FAILURE TO APPEAR, not because they lost, but because they did not show up. At the end, the attorney for the plaintiff's attorney would call my name. I went to the consult room and he said you owe XYZ Company $12,345. I said I have no knowledge that this debt is mine. He said, so you are saying you dispute the debt. I said yes. He continued the case until the next month.

The next month, the same thing happened. That time I told the attorney they still have not sent me proof this is my debt. It was continued.

The next month, the attorney asked if we had gone through discovery yet. I said, I don't think so. He said ok and then continued the case.

The next month, the attorney asked if we had gone through discovery. I said no, I have not received anything yet.. He said ok and then continued the case. Two weeks later I got the discovery papers.

The next month the attorney called me back before court started. He then asked if they had sent the discovery papers yet. I said, yes and then it was continued.

The next month, the attorney called me back before court started again. He said they still needed to review the discovery. I decided I needed to file my own discovery so I went to the law library to find out how to handle it.

The next month, he said we were going to trial. I filed my motion for discovery with the court and signed the trial papers.

I had 5 weeks to prepare for trial. 2 weeks before trial I got a motion to dismiss at plaintiffs cost.

"She said that I didn't have to admit to anything in court unless they have the statements on the account and the original credit card contract that I signed with them. She said not to admit to anything just because their attorney shows up with an "affidavit". "

Even if they have those things you don't admit anything. There are two things they need to prove their case: 1. Proof of ownership - they have to have the proof they own or were assigned the debt. 2. Proof this is your debt.

I have seen a lady in court because she settled with a JDB and paid them in full, but they did not have the right to collect. She was sued again by Asset Acceptance.

"If they don't have proper documentation, then I need to ask for a trial and make a motion for discovery. "

You don't ask for trial before you go through discovery. You want to go through discovery first.

Let them file discovery first, that way you know what they do and do not have.

"The Clerk told me that I could bring my answers with me in the morning along with my Motion for Discovery."

You need to read the Rules of Court Procedures. Each clerk will tell you different things. For example, one clerk told me all I had to do was write a memo up on a piece of paper. That is not true. There is a format each document has to be. The format is just like the complaint.

"So, I guess that I'm going to contact the local legal aid service and see what they have to tell me. $250 is a lot of money, but if it stops these credit card collection agencies from seizing my bank account and putting liens on my house and vehicle...then it's worth it."

Are these JDB or OCs collecting? If they are JDBs then just make them prove their case.
Is the debt still in Statute of Limitations? MO is 5 years. That is 5 years from date of last payment. Some CC decide to determine their own place of law.

For example, Cap One chose a state that has a 3 year statute of limitations and WAMU chose Nevada with has a 4 year statute of limitations.

"Well, I know that they are going to use an affidavit. The petition includes an "affidavit in support of plaintiffs claim".
So, then do I tell the judge that the affidavit is hearsay and make my motion for discovery then? "

Anything you tell the judge or want to tell the judge you want to put in a memo.

Here is how I handled the affidavit.
Comes now, Defendant YOUR NAME and respectfully states the following:

1. Plaintiff has submitted into evidence an Affidavit of Debt.

2. Said document pertains to acts and events that allegedly occurred between Defendant and a third party, OC NAME.

3. At no time was the creator of the affidavit of debt nor any of Plaintiffs employees present to witness any alleged acts or creation of the records of transactions occurring between defendant and OC NAME.

4. As such said affidavit falls under the hearsay rule and is inadmissible as evidence.

5. Defendant further states that the affidavit is not subject to the hearsay business records exemption because it was not made at or near the time of the alleged acts or events, and;

6. The information contained in the document is merely an accumulation of hearsay, and;

7. Upon information and belief, the creator of the document in Plaintiff's Affidavit is not currently and has never been employed with OC NAME and therefore cannot have personal knowledge of how OC NAMEs records were prepared and maintained, and;

8. Is unqualified to testify as to the truth of the information contained in Plaintiff's Affidavit.

WHEREFORE, the Defendant prays that Plaintiff's Affidavit be stricken from evidence in the above action.

Here is where I got the rules of court.
stlouisco com / circuitcourt/RulesofCourt

I just saw you have probably gone to court already. How did it go?

Well, I had court today. They had a local lawyer that just had a list of cases. He said that his job was to get a judgement today, or have it put off. I told him that I needed to have it put off because I had planned to file a motion for discovery.

The lawyer told the judge that they had paperwork on the way. The judge told me that I had to respond to their paperwork in a timely manner or I risked being able to present my side of the case. I do hope that they send it to me certified, so I have to sign for it. My mail tends to at times not find me. Just the other day I had to go reapply for med. for my daughter. I didn't get the letter stating that they were going to cancel her med. I found out when I went to the pharmacy to refill her meds.
The judge also told me that he couldn't tell me how to do my motion for discovery, but that when I got the paperwork from them, I could basically follow how they did. Then bring it to the clerk to file at the court house and mail a copy to the lawyer.

This is a JDB that is collecting with the help of a lawyer. That's why I'm asking them to prove their case. I've read to many horror stories .

I'm pretty sure that all my CC will be past their SOL by the end of 2010.
I'm thinking this might be for a Providian CC that by my records the SOL runs out in June 2010. I'm not sure though. The petition says that the OC was WashingtonMutual. I don't have anything in my CC folders that says it's from them.

I didn't intend to not be able to pay my CC which is everyone's story. I just can't pay them.

I don't want to file BR, but I just don't know what else to do. I have 5 other CC that I haven't been able to pay.
If I didn't own my home, it wouldn't bother me so much to have "judgements" against me. My credit is shot anyway because the CC have been listed as chargeoffs.

My income is SSI. I know that they can't garnish it. I'm just worried about them going after my husbands' income, or them trying to take my house or vehicle.
These are my CC debt from before I got married. My husband was never on my accounts, nor did he ever use the cards. Actually when we got married the cards were already cut up because I couldn't pay them.

It just bites that I have less income now that I'm married than I did before.


I wish I lived in a state that had a 3 year SOL.

I was sued by Asset Acceptance for a Washington Mutual Credit Card too. In the card holder agreement it stated Nevada was their choice of law. I think it was on the last page. Nevada's SOL is 4 years. Has it been 4 years since your last payment? Did you get an agreement with the complaint?

When I contacted WAMU to get info on the account, they said they had no record of the account. So, I would question where they are getting their info.

About discovery. They have to send it Certified Mail. You will have 33 days to respond. It is required that they send it to you on paper and an electronic format. What I have been finding out is most people's diskette is empty, mine was.

If the petition said Wamu then that is who it was for.

Read your rules of court procedure. It is important that you follow them. If they have you for breach of contract then tell them they have to produce a contract.

"I was sued by Asset Acceptance for a Washington Mutual Credit Card too. In the card holder agreement it stated Nevada was their choice of law. I think it was on the last page. Nevada's SOL is 4 years. Has it been 4 years since your last payment? Did you get an agreement with the complaint?"

All I got was the petition with an "affidavit in support of plaintiffs claim" and a statement page that says it's not an original...that it's been generated on behalf of lvnv funding llc, account owner.

"If the petition said Wamu then that is who it was for."

I don't have any credit cards or anything else with Wamu unless they bought one of my providian cards.

I don't have any paperwork that says Wamu. My old providian statements say:
Your account is issued by Providian National Bank, Tilton, NH

Did you make it clear you had no contract or obligation to pay the plaintiff? Have you gone to creditboards? They have a lot of helpful info on the website. You have to register, and then you can get to the hidden forums.