A lot of people are pushed into our offices as a result of collection agencies initiating legal proceedings. This is usually started by a summons and complaint. This typically gives the defendant a certain amount of time to respond. In Washington, this time period if twenty (20) days. If the defendant doesn’t respond, then the collection agency gets what is called a default judgment.

Many times defendants respond to the summons and complaint with an “Answer” and dispute the allegations in the Complaint.

The result is a ‘Summary Judgment’ motion. A summary judgment motion is a motion that says – “There are no facts in dispute between the plaintiff and defendant. The defendant is liable on the debt based upon the fact that a contract was signed, payments were required, payments were made, and therefore, the defendant is liable on the debt.”

It is the short cut to avoid a trial.

If you receive a summary judgment motion in the mail, you have a certain amount of time to respond. It will typically state how much time you have on the front of the documents. If you do not respond, then the court will issue a judgment against you as you did not dispute the motion.

If you do respond, you must have an actual factual dispute against the creditor. For example, if it was not your account, this would put a central fact of the case in dispute. If you can dispute any material fact, then the summary judgment motion must be denied and a trial granted.

Whether you respond to these legal proceedings or not is up to you. When planning for a bankruptcy filing, most bankruptcy attorneys prefer to file before a judgment is entered by the Court in the collection proceeding.

Jay S. Jump
Seattle, WA
www.jumplawgroup.com