Grounds for Dismissal Before Even Answering the Complaint (check your State's Rules of Trial Procedure)

Credit Card Debt Lawsuit-Pro Se

After checking the above, most likely you did not get a copy of the Original Contract that you signed with the Original Creditor so you have grounds for dismissal.

You most likely did not get a copy of the Assignment showing that the Plaintiff is the Real Party in interest which is another ground for dismissal.

Some states require Credit Card Statements as well as the contract. Check your State's Rules of Trial Procedure and find out exactly what is needed by the Plaintiff when filing their complaint.

In Indiana if the Junk Debt Buyer didn't attach a copy of the Contract to the Complaint I would file a Motion to Dismiss for Failure to Comply with Indiana Trial Rule 9.2 and I would get it dismissed period. However, it would be dismissed without prejudice, which means that they can sue me for this again. In Indiana they have 30 days to file a Motion to Amend their complaint if the Case is dismissed without prejudice under trial rule 9.2. The judge will then grant them that motion, give them the amount of days requested. After those amount of days that they were given run out and they did not amend their complaint I would file a Motion to Dismiss Case with Prejudice and most likely get it. You see, they messed up once, got another chance, messed up again well Ba Bye your done.

The Older The Debt The Harder To Prove

Now, depending on how old your debt is, most Junk Debt Buyers do not have proper documentation when they are suing Debtors. So the odds of them coughing up the original contract are basically slim to none.

Watch out for any Agreement they throw in there as well. Run a Credit Report and find out the Date you opened the account they are suing you for. Make sure that the date that the Terms and Agreement that they gave you is within the time frame of you using that account. If it isn't file a motion to strike under the grounds that the Year that the Terms and Agreement Plaintiff has submitted is not within the year you had the account opened with the Original Creditor.

They are now going to submit an Affidavit or maybe they already have submitted an affidavit of debt.

You need to look at the Affidavit closely and see who signed it and check your Rules of Evidence for Hearsay and if it falls under this, file a Motion To Strike the Affidavit.

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Is a Credit Card considered an Open Account or Written Contract?

Most of the States across the Country consider a Credit Card an Open Account. However, you will need to do a little digging in regards to this being a fact in your State.

When you signed the contract with the Original Creditor somewhere in the Terms and Conditions it must have stated that they have the right to assign your debt and other terms. Well, if so, the Plaintiff who is claiming you are indebted to them must show you a copy of that Assignment proving that the Original Creditor did indeed sign over all their rights to the Plaintiff to lawfully sue you.

Think about how old your debt is

If it is really old let's say 5-7 years .. this debt could have gone down a whole heck of a lot of collectors before it reached this one. Therefore, they could be numerous things 1. the assignee of the assignor, or 2. the assignee of an assignee and maybe worse 3. the assignee of an assignee of an assignee. You need to make them prove that the ORIGINAL CREDITOR signed this over to them only.

Legal Disclaimer- I am not a lawyer, I am not providing any legal advice nor am I claiming to be a legal or debt expert. This information is provided on my own research and experiences with my own Debt Lawsuits. This information and sample documents are for research and sample purposes, use this advice and forms at your own risk.