Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in New York

Summons Issued/SOL Expired

Hello,

Apparently I was issued a summons to appear in City Court for a civil judgment against me. Two things: 1st, I moved out of New York State and lived with my sister in North Carolina two months before the summons was ever delivered. 2nd, the address on the summons wasn't even my address in NY. It belongs to my brother, and he can atest that I NEVER lived at that address.

I drove clear back to New York to the court in which the default judgment was awarded (because I never showed up), to fill out the forms to have it vacated and the clerk told me that ''there are no forms to distribute since an answer was not filed by you and

there was no indication that the mailing was returned undelivered, therefore a

Default Judgment was entered 8/28/06.''

I tried to explain that the Statue of Limitations in NY to collect on this debt has expired and the address the summons was mailed to wasn't even my current address. She said that supposedly, ''a neighbor verified you lived there'', refused to answer anymore of my questions, and then said ''you may contact your attorney or any local Supreme Court Library that

has public access to legal research''.

What can I do now that they're not willing to allow me to vacate it?


Asked on 10/13/06, 3:03 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Jason Stern Law Offices of Jason Stern

Re: Summons Issued/SOL Expired

You need to retain an attorney to help you file a motion to vacate the judgment. You need to prove that you had valid excuse for failing to respond to the summons and a meritorious defense. How much was the judgment for? If you need me to assist you in this matter, please contact me via email. A judgment in New York is valid for 20 years and may remain on your credit report for 25 or until satisfied.

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Answered on 10/13/06, 3:52 pm
Guy Lewit Guy Mitchell Lewit, Esq.

Re: Summons Issued/SOL Expired

The clerk is wrong. You should GO BACK to the court and ask to see the head clerk, or another clerk. You may file a motion to vacate a judgment ANYTIME if you are alleging improper service (or no service). You don't have to (but you should) include any factual defenses you may have to the underlying claim. You do NOT need an attorney and using an attorney might make things worse. 99.9% of the time the court will vacate the judgment and allow you to submit your "answer" to the "complaint" filed by the creditor's attorneys. When that time comes, you should include all the factual and legal defenses you may have. Bad clerk. Tell him/her to re-read CPLR 3015 (which is the section of the law that governs motions to vacate default judgments).

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Answered on 10/13/06, 6:47 pm


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