Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Re: Tenant Lawsuit

I believe that you may be stuck with the judgement on your credit report since I believe that you were a legitimate co-defendant. In a judgement against co-defendants, any co-defendant is usually responsible for paying the entire judgemt. Thereafter, the paying co-defendant can chase the other co-defendant's for contibution.

In regards to what will remain on your credit report, another attorney more well versed in that particular area could probably give you a more appropriate response than myself.

Welcome to doing business with family.

Re: Tenant Lawsuit

You are stuck with the judgment. Only an unpaid judgment effects your credit adversely. You are entitled to indemnification from your sister. You should either have your sister pay off the judgment or pay it yourself and pursue her for reimbursement. You should send an explanation to each of the three major credit reporting agencies and send them proof of satisfaction of the judgment.

Re: Tenant Lawsuit

Advice to others who might read this post: If you are sued, you should consult with an attorney or, at the very least, appear for the trial -- even in small claims. Otherwise your rights will be put in jeopardy. Sorry to hear about the judgment against you. My colleagues offer sound advice.

Re: Tenant Lawsuit

Your question doesn't say whether you were served with the summons and complaint. If you weren't, then the court never had jurisdiction over you and you can have the judgment set aside. But if you were served, chose to ignore the matter and did not appear for the trial, then you will have a very hard time getting the judgment cleared.

You are right that this debt should not have been your problem, but the court had no way of knowing that if you didn't say so. If the plaintiff served you then, from the court's perspective, it looked like you were just accepting the accusation and not disputing any of it. When this happens, the non-appearing defendant loses -- regardless of how easily he would have won had he shown up.

You may still be able to file a motion for relief from the default and the resulting default judgment, but the odds will not be in your favor. As more time passes your chances will get worse, and they will hit zero before too long. Hiring a lawyer for this task will cost more than $1,000, so you will probably want to do it yourself unless clearing this blemish from your record is sufficiently important to you. If you just want to avoid having to pay the debt, it might still be worthwhile to pay for an hour of attorney time to make sure you are doing things correctly.