Q: Sued for breach of loan contract. Want to settle with payment plans. Bad idea to talk to other side's attorney directly?
Younger me was stupid and made a lot of mistakes, credit-wise. I was served a summons, found out I am being sued by a creditor in my local California Superior Court in my county. I want to settle and ask for a payment plan and avoid going to court if possible to save time and money. Would it be stupid to call and talk directly to the other side's attorney, saying I want to settle, would you accept 30-40% of what you're demanding (30-40% of $9,200), would you accept a payment plan, I can put down first payment right now, this is my current income monthly, this is how much I can afford right now, can we work something out without going to court, etc.? Would I be making a mistake from a legal point of view? I am a 27 year old college student, I cannot afford a lawyer. I was unemployed for almost two years during covid, took the first job offer I could get in December 2021, back to work part time. Worst case scenario, I ask family for help in affording a lawyer, but last, last resort.
A:
You WILL want to talk to a debt defense attorney as:
1- The statute of limitations MAY have expired already?
2- They MAY be breaking some laws in HOW they try to collect?
3- IF 1 or 2 is correct, they MAY have to pay your attorney AND pay you!!
Good luck with it.
A: you can always contact the other side and try to negotiate. but given that you are not an attorney and likely do not know your rights, they will likely take advantage of that. you might benefit from filing bankruptcy and wiping out this debt and any other debt you may have. you are young enough that your credit will likely recover quickly after a fresh start. you may also want to speak to a consumer attorney that handles fair debt collection practices cases to make sure the creditor is not violating any consumer laws that protect you.
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