Q: I cannot go to court 100 miles way in June and I'm being sued.
I"m 63 fully disabled and own a house with little equity and a mortgage and zero money. It is automatically homesteaded in San Bernardino. I went from partial to fully disabled in 2017.
I cannot go to court 100 miles way in June. I can't even leave my house 99% of the time.
How do I tell the courts all of this? Or file some kind of thing.
and Can the credit card company take my home?
I was served months ago, but I don't understand anything in the papers. Only that a court date is in June. Thank you for your help
A:
With the limited information you provided, I am going to infer that you were sued by your credit card company and you have not filed an answer to the complaint.
First, check the court's website to find out when the courthouse will be open again.
Second, you can download a form answer to complaint which you can fill out and file yourself. Here's the link: https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/pldc010.pdf The form you will want to use is PLD-C-010, which is a simple answer to complaint for breach of contract. You probably should talk to a lawyer or paralegal near you who can help you fill out the form.
Third, you need to file the Answer to the complaint by the due date, which should be stated on the summons you received with the complaint that was served on you. There is a filing fee you will have to pay, unless you file a request for waiver of court fees and costs due to your disability. There is another form for that which you can also get from the forms website. It is a Request for Waiver of Court Fees, which you can find under the category Fee Waiver on the Forms page. (https://www.courts.ca.gov/forms.htm?filter=FW)
Finally, I doubt you must go to the courthouse until there is a hearing set which requires your personal attendance.
Tim Akpinar and Marco Antonio Torres agree with this answer
1 user found this answer helpful
A: Have you been "Served" with a Summons and Complaint? If so, you have 30 days to file an Answer. This is a simple form you fill out and can file online. Once you file your Answer, you can try to negotiate a settlement with Plaintiff. None of your assets, home, money or otherwise are subject to seizure or garnishment until a court enters a Judgment against you. NOTE: If you do not file an Answer within the 30 days after service of the Complaint, Plaintiff can take your Default Judgment, which can lead to seizure and garnishment of money and property. Here is link for online Answer: https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/pldc010.pdf
Tim Akpinar agrees with this answer
1 user found this answer helpful
A:
You say you were served months ago and have a court date in June, and you cannot understand "ANYTHING" in the papers. But somehow you understand that your credit card company is involved. To me this says 1. you were sued in small claims and 2. you don't WANT to understand anything in the papers. You are 63, not 6, you need to make an effort here.
Right now the Courts are dealing with allowing what they call "remote appearances" which mean appearances by video through the internet. San Bernardino is one of those courts.
You need to stop playing "ostrich" and pull your head up and read what the papers say about the date, time and place where you are supposed to be and then try to contact that courtroom by phone which number can be obtained on the court website. If you are not capable of doing this, you need to contact a paralegal in 29 palms where you live and discuss with them how they can help you or even look on the internet (or ask a neighbor to do it for you) to see if there is a legal aid society in the county near you that you can get help at. If you are "fully disabled" you must be receiving assistance from someone, you need to discuss this with them to see what can be done to assist you.
Mostly you need to pay your bills and if you can't you need to cut up your credit cards. Maybe call your CC company and see if they will make a deal to dismiss the case.
Old adage: "The law helps those who help themselves."
I am sorry that I am not as sympathetic as the other attorneys that answered, but I don't think you are that old and I don't think you are helping yourself. I am the cold shower.
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