Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Virginia

Re: Warrant in Debt

A warrant in debt is just a lawsuit on a standard

form, in the streamlined procedures of the

general district court. First, you probably

received a copy by mail. You must also be

officially 'served' by the Sheriff's deputy or

a private process server, which might be posted

on the door where you live. So you should end up

getting two copies before it is valid.

Second, there is a court date and at that date

the judge will ask if you agree or disagree with

the amount claimed. If you disagree, the case

will be set for a trial at a future date,

probably about 2 months beyond the first court

date.

If you lose, either by agreeing or at the trial,

the court will enter a judgment. That means

that the court will officially decide that you

owe the money. It does NOT mean that you have

to pay instantly. It is just a court decision

that you owe the money.

Third, then, the creditor has a right to try to

take various actions to collect on the court

judgment, such as 'garnishing' your bank account

if they know where you bank, or 'garnishing'

part of your salary if they know where you work.

They can pull you in to answer questions about

your finances. But no one can make you pay if

you don't have money. You will pay when and if

you have money, even after a court judgment.

However, a tip: You might want to change banks

and you should start trying to keep enough cash

on hand outside of your bank account to pay one

month's rent or mortgage, so that if your bank

account is 'garnished' (and ends up getting

frozen as a result), you will still be able to

pay your rent or mortgage. That traps hits some

people very hard. You might want to try to move

to a cash economy as much as possible because

even if you have written checks, those checks

can 'bounce' if your bank account is garnished

before the check clears the bank.

However, none of that can happen until after a

judgment is entered. So you probably have a

couple of months to transition into these

precautions.

Re: Warrant in Debt

Call Capital One and try to renegotiate your payment plan. In the alternative you should go to court on your return date and ask for a trial date. This will give you more time to arrange for payment. If they get a judgment they can garnish your bank accounts and wages. Call if you have more questions.