Judgement and Texas

By the way, in fact the Plaintiff's Original Petition (Statement of Claim) for suing in Justice Court is just a one page printout, on which you just put your name and address, etc, and the defendants name and address and phone. It just asks how much you are suing (no more than $10,000 plus costs). for and to "state the nature of the claim in concise form without technicality..." (ie., no formal pleadings). Then it's just a matter of you and the court clerk signing it. Filing fee in many counties $17.00, and $75 for serving the citation.

thanks alot you two. i am trying to soak all of this in.
yes the page does say "in the justice court", the precinct # and county.
if i ask the clerk why was heard in a justice court..what if they say i don't know or maybe that other courts in my county are too busy and so the overflow comes to them?
if they say i don't know what should my reaction/response be?
but about the ca suing me..as i said in one of the other posts somewhere, at the top left the page says,
"PALISADES COLLECTION, L.L.C., ASSIGNEE OF HSBC, PLAINTIFF
VS.
ME DEFENDANT(S)
So would the clerk agree, by the way it looks above that a collection agency is suing me even thought they bought the debt from hsbc?
i mean as you said any attorney hired to do so can file for them in court. do i find out who actually did the filing (name/firm)? or what do you think?
also did you ever find out when the SOL starts on the 4yrs for this type of debt in texas? i still cannot find a thing. don't know who to call to even find out.
thanks again

Well, it would be four years from the date of delinquency. If no payments had been made on the account and it was 30 days late as of 1/13/04 once you get this overturned you can just claim SOL as your defense (I believe) If I am not correct on this lawstudent please feel free to chime in.

looking over an older credit report i have, i have older ones that i will be checking, all i can get out of it for the oc is that it looks like i am almost 1 yr shy of meeting the 4 yr sol darn it. but i am double checking. this is an acct i kept perfect, and i mean a-1 perfect, for many years and when no more money coming in i had to let it go. as i said i had totally forgotten about it.
any other ideas what to say to the clerk or other thoughts would be appreciated.
oh one more thing about being served. what if the server lied and said i was here or something, etc. i was reading about them doing that somewhere online, just more sleaziness. i even read somewhere on a texas site that some are requested to jot down what the person looked like that they handed the summons to. any ideas or experiences?
i would love to ruin this for them somehow. but have to admit with my sol not doing anything for me it appears, then i don't know if i have any other recourse, except to have them prove the debt as you suggested. if they perhaps did it might be worse so really in a quandry. its been 3 yrs since charged off it looks like by the oc. but afraid what might come after.
still want to call the clerk and find out what i can.
let me know. thanks again.

Don't rely on the credit report to determine SOL...sometimes a CA will reage accounts illegally to continue collection. Do you remember when the last time you paid it? If not, make the CA prove -everything-. Once you get this overturned you can DV them before they can make a new suit against you, then technically they can't sue you until they validate. If they do anyhow, you have them for that violation and your counter-suit starts from there.

Weather you DV before or while you are being sued, force them to give you all the documentation. A signed contract that shows what interest or other charges they can change for default..if there isn't any then the CA is out of luck..they can't tack on even a dollar in collection fees unless your contract states this. Also make them prove they own the account. Plus, you can determine the SOL from the contract and use it against them if in fact is out of SOL.

thanks all
well the date sounds about right but no i just cannot remember that many years back, just can't bet my life on it.
but since default judgment has been made (never served) ill have to see what the court says this week when i call them. i can't DV them now.
believe me if i can get this overturned i will definitely DV them!
yes i can tell by the credit report that this was re aged several times but not sure by who...OC or CA.
clues are, says it was charged off 3 dates, mar 06, oct 05, and sep 05. status as of mar 06, i think, says acct charged off/collection acct, then the amt. and it says written off and the amt. again and past due as of mar 2006, but i KNOW the LAST payment was way before that and i think you can tell that to by the above charged off dates. it doesn't even list my original limit just the exact amt that i was sued for coincidentally.
and it is listed by the name of the OC, not the collection agency. so confused.
any ideas?

oh forgot to add it also says Collection as of aug 05 AND jl 05. does this mean anything too?
just so i might not sound like a total idiot, if the clerk agrees (doesn't the judge have to agree?) that this should not have been petitioned in their court. am i supposed to file a motion and i send this or go in person? i do not transportation during the day so need to know this if possible. no experience with court whatsoever.
please tell me what to do in what order and if forms needed, etc. i have made some notes for all y'alls great info/input but will be alittle nervous.
thanks

Usually the attorney's name is on the original petition. It doesn't matter about HSBC, it's still a collection suit. I'm sure the clerk can answer most of your questions. As to whether you have to be there in person, it depends on your county. In some counties (though they are few), it is now possible to file electronically. I wouldn't know what to advise, because this is a strange case. Generally, in Justice Court, they already have a lot of forms already printed, for you to fill in. Unless law has changed recently (the small claims amount was raised recently), this court was not the proper venue, regardless whether District Court dockets were full. I'd talk to an attorney, because you might also have causes of action against the credit reporting agencies. You might possibly sue them, if you have disputed this information with them.

yes i fully intend to get as much info as possible from the clerk, i only hope she is the helpful kind and thats what i would think is after all is said and done it IS a collection suit. would that be a statute or a law that collections are not allowed to sue? and as the credit report states it has been charged off maybe that is good proof that this is definitely brought on by a collection agency??
not sure what info you mean that was reported to a credit bureau but no palisades has not posted anything themselves so can you tell me what you mean and what i should look for in this case? are you talking about the credit bur letting them reage this after it was written off?
i just want to make sure i have enought correct jargon to make sure these people know what i mean/want.
thanks for any more help or any other suggestions you can think of

well i guess this is over. the clerk was very rude and not very helpful. very rude.
but i did find out:
this was a justice suit not a small claims and she said these collections can be file there and they are all the time.
she says the paperwork says i was served on nov 19 07, by a contracted server. he lied. that is my birthday coincidentally and i think i would remember that. i am home all day everyday. no one showed up. due to his lie it has made my life very difficult until i die basically or get rich enuf (as if) to pay all this off.
my only recourse is to appeal, which my state has made nearly impossible for most reg. people. that if i want to appeal it i will have to get a cash bond double the amt of the judgment which would be over $2200. uummm i don't have money to pay off the debt much less the bond. and of course if i lose i lose the money too.
she said the judgment allows them to get a writ of execution-they can come out and search my home for things to sell to settle the debt, they can do a garnishment-no wages, don't have any, which is bank accts (already taken care of those), and can report this to the credit bureaus
and i only have until this friday to appeal...
so didn't we come over from england to escape debtors prisons too?
so i'll never be able to have a bank acct again i guess since the judgment is "good" for 10 yrs and they can renew it in my wonderful state. i don't know who to call or ask to find out anything about it afraid to call my bank but should i call the legal dept? won't they kindof flag my acct?
don't know what to do now
any advice

Have you taken the opportunity to seek legal council yet? Just because they say it is OK but if lawstudent says its an improper venue you may wish to double check with a attorney. You might be able to fight this, rather than filing a appeal you can try to get the judgment vacated due to dysfunctional service and due to improper venue.

no i can't afford legal council and legal aid in my county is a very small office that generally helps women and children on more important issues than this. i used this office years ago in a divorce and they almost didn't take my case but luckily they did.
talk to some nicer clerks in other court offices that had knowledge of this type of case and i am pretty much out of luck. but at least got things clarified and of course they cannot give me legal advice.
but they can continuously, after 30 days of judge signing, can file the writ of execution...i have nothing but my home and bank accts. and they can do this continously for up to 10 yrs and then my state allows them to redo it all over again after that.
i have filed a homestead exemption-was reading on some tex lawyers site that somehow they might still be able to seize your home if this exemption has not been filed to prove this is your main place of residence- many years ago and double checked this with the county today. hope it is the same thing as i originally filed it for property tax reasons...forgot to ask them that. anyone know?
i have taken care of my bank accts and just will be money ordering alot from now on.
do you think sleazy palisades will file a writ for $1100? or will they wait someday, within the 10 yrs until the balance grows, and then try?
i'm in my 50s...never had anything and never will probably.
any comments or suggestions are appreciated. y'all have helped me through this difficult weekend to an extent you just don't know.

oops sorry the above post is from me :oops:

Try seeking a free consultation to see if you have grounds for vacation.

That's very different from JP courts that I've dealt with. They can't just start taking things from your home with a writ of execution, as I've said the state has a very long list of things exempted from execution. Sounds like that clerk doesn't know much about the law that they're handing out there. Unless there's been a recent change, those courts can't hear collection cases. Sounds more like you're the victim of some "kangaroo court".

well the rude clerk this morning laughed at me when i suggested that and says theres hundreds of cases just like mine in their office, when i brought that up. she said the difference is that mine was justice court case and the others that fall under the no collectors statute are for small claims. they just changed the amount between justice/small claims in sept i found out. but i still wouldn't have "qualified" for small claims by what i got from her.
what i was concerned about is that i have a roommate who stores things for their job in my garage that would be hard pressed to prove they are not mine if i got a cantankerous sheriff. they would qualify definitely as tools. and that is on the list of exemptions but at this point i don't trust anyone connected with this now.
palisades had their server lie about when he served me as they would not have a case without it. and i told the clerk this. but they can't do anything since it has a judgement and i don't have any money to go toward this stupid thing. very frustrating.
so needless to say i closed one bank acct today and will be doing so with one other i have this week.
no more bank accts. at least for 10 yrs. if palisades did this for the relatively small amt they say i owe, what would be next? looks like they will do anything to make their point and have crooks all over to help them do it.
thanks

In my state they are not allowed to sue in small claims court nor JP, they have to go to circuit court. I think someone's not being honest with you.

thanks jc but i can only go by what all the clerks told me. you wouldn'd think so in jp court anyway.

You can go beyond the clerk. You can ask a magistrate or judge. Someone who actually knows the law. Seems to me like your getting taken her. You shouldn't roll over and take it.

Can a judgement in Texas take your car from you if it is paid for?

i don't think so cami, but only one car that is your own..but i am not an authority in any way. another in your name might be considered an "asset", that could be sold to satisfy your debt. see this site that might help you decide (scroll down for your info but whole page is very informative for texans):
lawdog.com/states/tx/judm.htm

No, you are exempted one car per person.

they got your car, sold it, and now they want you to pay deficiency balance. let them file a judgement and when you get summons/complaint answer that this care has already been repossessed and they are trying to collect on deficiency balance which is more then your car value probably. find out what they got for the car subtract deficiency from outstanding balance when they repoed. no need to worry