Q: What happens if I am served as the "Unknown Tenant 1" in a lawsuit against the homeowner?
My mother is being sued by her mortgage company and facing foreclosure. The defendants listed are my mother, her unknown spouse, unknown tenant 1 and unknown tenant 2. When the process server arrived, I advised them that my mother wasn't home at the moment and that I was her daughter. She asked if I lived at the house and I told her yes, although I do not, as I figured this would be the only way to obtain the documents on my mother's behalf. The process server provided me with my mothers copy of the summons as well as a copy for the unknown tenant. My question is, will I now be involved in this lawsuit?
A: Very likely yes as you told them you lived there, and since the bank has to foreclose all interests of everyone who lives there, your name will now be in the lawsuit. It wont have any financial penalty against you, but your name will now appear in a foreclosure in court records. It would have been better to be honest and not had your name involved. Your mother should hire a lawyer ASAP as since you accepted service for her she only has 20 days from the date you took the docs to respond to the lawsuit.
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