<< Hello all-- Excuse the random query, reply off list if you dont mind, but
a friend/colleague of mine has a bit of a problem in re. some debt
collecting lawyer b.s. She has just been served a summons to appear in
court, on Dec 27th, in re. a $1200 debt from a credit card co. (First
Union Bank, quite a name). BUt my friend cannot appear and the student
legal aid offices are closed for the holidays, so she is wondering what
will happen as a result. I myself figured this means the judgment goes to
the plaintiff, but then what? My friend has your typical grad student
income (i.e., low) and is unconcerned about her credit rating, so is
wondering how they will proceed to get blood from a stone. Can credit
card/court scum garnish wages, and what are the limits on that? I assume
debtor's=prisons havent come back yet....
>>
Without venturing to offer legal advice (I don't even know what state your friend is in, which woiuld determine the governing law), one might surmise that if your friend does not appear she will probably lose by default and have a judgment entered against her. It is possible that she would be subject to wage garnishment, depending on the creditor's remedies available in the state. Without being overly sympathetic to the bank, I am wondering why you dismiss it and the courts as scum for expecting her to repay the money she borrowed, but that is neither here nor there. Your friend might try to contact the bank and explain that she cannot pay just now but would be willing to work out a repayment scheme over time. If the bank was amenable, that would avoid the difficulties associated with a judgment lien on her assets, whatever they might be. She might not care about her credit rating now, but the lien would remain on her credit reports for seven years (at least), and she might care down the road.
--jks