Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in New York

Re: received a summons for very old credit card debt

You would need to move to dismiss the action. Please feel free to contact me.

Re: received a summons for very old credit card debt

If the debt is ten years old, the claim is time barred. You will have to make a motion to dismiss. Please feel free to contact me if I can be of help.

Daniel Clement

Re: received a summons for very old credit card debt

The statute of limitations in New York to collect a debt is 6 years, thus based on your facts, the action should be dismissed. You will have to file such a motion within 30 days of receiving the summons and complaint.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or require further assistance.

Kind regards,

Peter Moulinos

Re: received a summons for very old credit card debt

You should contact the court that issued the summons and complaint and find out from the clerk how long you have to file an ANSWER to the complaint. You can file an answer yourself or you can retain an attorney...since you do not indicate how much they claim you owe it is difficult to determine if you should bear the expense of hiring a lawyer. You could represent yourself..especially since the statute of limitations defense is relatively straight forward. You can ask for assistance from the PRO SE (pronounced PRO SAY) clerk (to a limited extent). Know that there are exceptions to the 6 year statute of limitations rule...one is if you move out of state (the statute does not run while you are away). Also, if you make a payment or indicate that you admit the debt in writing you may start the clock running anew. Your short explanation does not allow me to help you further...if you need assistance contact the local bar association and see if they have PRO BONO programs (some attorneys like to handle matters free of charge now and then to satisfy the unwritten rule that attorneys should "give back" to the community. Just be sure NOT to make any settlement offers (in writing) since that might affect the statute. Good luck. Oh yes, if you answer the complaint yourself and do not include the defense of statute of limitations you waive it...so be careful...Finally, the question of Federal Fair debt violations is based on a number of factors...none of which you discuss.