Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Virginia

Re: Warrant in debt

Write the check and then submit a brief explanation (250 words or less)of your version of

the situation to the major credit reporting agencies if and when the adverse item appears on your credit report.

Re: Warrant in debt

Mr. Hendrickson answered about the credit report. As for their suing you in VA, if that's where you lived at the time, yes, they can sue you there.

Re: Warrant in debt

I'd add a couple of complications to what's already been said: if the action was filed by a debt collector (that can, but does not necessarily include lawyers) other than the creditor, then they have to file where you live, or if it's a contract-based cause of action, where the contract was originally entered into.

As Mr. Press pointed out, if you lived in Richmond at the time the debt was incurred, regardless of when the suit was filed, the judgment may be valid, as long as the plaintiff got proper service of process. If you didn't have notice of the suit, there's a really good chance that they didn't.

At this point, if you settle the claim, the case will be dismissed, but it will still show up as a judgment against you. You could do well to contest it, get the judgment vacated, and then pay them off. That way there's no judgment and anyone who reports it as such would be doing so in violation of both federal and state law.