Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in California
Institutional student loan
A collection agency contacted me in July about 2
institutional student loans taken out in California in
1983 and 1984. Promissory notes that I signed back
then are 1 page forms headed ''retail installment
contract'' . Last payment was 1998 The school says
these are ''private institutional loans'' they made directly
to me. Are these loans collectable in perpetuity (as are
federal student loans), or are they subject to the 4-yr
statute of limitations on debt in California? Does
California or the federal govt extend special protection
to this type of educational loan to make it not subject to
SOL? How is the date of last activity determined--when
I made last payment or when school declared in
default? If latter, how can I find out this date, especially
if statute of limitations applies? Thanks.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Institutional student loan
The statute of limitations would probably run from the date default was declared, not from the date of last payment. The California statute of lims on this debt is probably 4 years. However, be advised that so-called "private" loans are often insured by the Federal Government or are part of a program that the fed insures, which means they still cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. In order to properly evaluate your case I would need to see the documentation you have and get more info from you.