Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Question for case of Breach of Contract and Common Courts

Pls. help us! we really need legal advice and could nto afford an attorney!!! We have been given summons for the said complaints and we have given an answer that do not strongly point out a defense(we are the defendants). We accept fault for it, though before the suit, we have tried making payments($300), but later on we could not afford the amount anymore with a single income and ask plaintiff to lower amount but denied it- as to then leading to the lawsuit. We are to the point where the plaintiff now requested for motion / judgment for pleadings hearing.

Question is: What is the best way to voice out to the judge (at the hearing) and say that$300 was too high for us. We do not plan to argue with plaintiff anymore, we just want to ask for consideration for about $50 or upto $100 at max per month, for wage garnishment (if they'll push for it) until the other gets a job. Also, we need time for 1st payment(start in August)due to a $230 traffic ticket/school due in July '05. Would there be a chance for us to voice out at this Motion Hearing? Is this request for consideration possible? Thank you so much for your time. This would really be a great help for we are so lost in this case and can't afford a lawyer.


Asked on 5/26/05, 11:34 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

Re: Question for case of Breach of Contract and Common Courts

Sorry, but the court can't order the plaintiff to accept any particular terms of repayment. If he wins -- which he evidently will, since you concede that you owe him the money -- the court will simply order you to pay the entire amount due, plus interest and court costs.

You and the plaintiff can negotiate repayment terms, but he is not required to cooperate with you and can continue to demand payment in full. He does have an incentive to work with you since the process of collecting the debt from you is costly and time-consuming, but how to proceed is entirely up to him. And if he does hire a collection agency you will be responsible for the costs he incurs, in addition to the amount of the judgment.

The collection agency can arrange to have your wages garnished, but I don't know how -- or why -- you would go about doing this voluntarily. If you are willing to have, say, $100 taken from your pay every month you should also be willing to write him a $100 check every month instead. A voluntary garnishment makes some sense because you won't be able to decide how much is taken in a court-ordered garnishment, but if you and the plaintiff can agree on a monthly amount then garnishment shouldn't be necessary at all.

You also have the option of filing for bankruptcy protection (unless you have recently been through the bankruptcy process), but that is a somewhat drastic step and you should consult a bankruptcy lawyer about the pros and cons of filing. If you do decide to file you should do so relatively soon; new laws take effect in late October which will make discharging your debts much more difficult unless you file your petition before then.

Good luck.

Read more
Answered on 5/26/05, 11:58 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More General Civil Litigation questions and answers in California