Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Massachusetts

court appearances

I received back in 2006 from the courts to appear for credit card debt. I never received notices due to vandilism was done to mailboxes on the road along with certain mail being removed out of my mailbox. On 2/27/2008 received another notification from a debt collector from an attorneys office. Tried to explain with evidence that this debt was not mine. Appeared in court on 6/5/2008 to remove this default but could not since the state of execution of the original appearances went back to 2006 and only had 1 year to provide evidence and dispute claim. Question: Magistrate was not sure of how long state of execution from the original court appearance in regards to statute of limitation running out. Because I did not act on original court appearance and statute of limitation according to magistrate is over 1 year old I am liable for the debt and therefore any proof I have is null and void to show that this account was not mine. Is there a time frame for the statute running out pertaining to original court appearance? Now the Attorneys office wants to seize my vehicle and attach any assets I may have to satisfy debt unless payment arrangements are made?


Asked on 6/05/08, 2:15 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
JOHN TATOIAN LAW OFFICE OF JOHN A. TATOIAN ESQ.*Licensed Only in Massachusetts

Re: court appearances

It seems a default judgment has entered against you which you now claim is invalid due to; 1) improper notice and 2) the debt upon which the judgment is based is invalid. I assume your question concerns what procedures would allow you to set aside the default and present your arguments. The procedure for setting aside a default judgment is governed by Massachusetts Rules of Civil Procedure 60(b), which states in pertinent part, that a judgment can be set aside based on mistake, inadvertence, surpise, excusable neglect, newly discovered evidence or fraud. In addition, the judgment can be set aside if it is void, has been satisfied or any other good cause. Please feel free to contact my office for a free initial consult based on the facts of your specific situation.;))))

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Answered on 6/12/08, 12:29 pm


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