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style=\"color:#109414;\"><span style=\"font-size:16px;\"><span class=\"theme-text-font-heading2\"><span style=\"background-color: initial; letter-spacing: 0px;\">It was a pretty good day until you got served. </span></span></span><span style=\"background-color: initial; letter-spacing: 0px;\"></span><br></span></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\">&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\">What now?&nbsp; That depends.&nbsp; What kind of court is it?&nbsp; (District Court, County Court at Law, Justice Court aka Justice of the Peace).&nbsp; What day did you get the lawsuit?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Who sued you (the Plaintiff)?&nbsp;&nbsp; This information will help you decide what to do. &nbsp; And, if you decide to hire a lawyer, it&nbsp;will help the lawyer quickly assess the situation.&nbsp; </span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"></span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"><u><strong>The Court</strong></u>:&nbsp;&nbsp; Most debt lawsuits are filed in Justice Court, also known as Justice of the Peace.&nbsp; Justice Courts are designed to allow you&nbsp;to represent yourself.&nbsp; It may not be necessary to hire a lawyer.&nbsp; &nbsp;If the lawsuit was filed in District Court or County Court at Law, it is very difficult to represent yourself. &nbsp; You should&nbsp;hire a lawyer to represent you. </span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"></span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"><u><strong>The Service Date</strong></u>: What day was the lawsuit handed to you?&nbsp; That&nbsp; day is called the \"service date\". &nbsp; The deadline to respond to the lawsuit&nbsp;is based on the service date. &nbsp;A response is&nbsp;your written answer&nbsp;to the lawsuit. &nbsp;If you don't file a written response the Plaintiff can get a default judgment against you. &nbsp; If the lawsuit was filed in a Justice Court, count 14 days after the service date.&nbsp; That's the due date.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"></span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\">If the lawsuit was filed in District or County Court at Law, count 20 days after the service date. &nbsp; Then, find the next Monday on the calendar. &nbsp; That's&nbsp;the day your answer is due.&nbsp; &nbsp; </span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"></span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\">If you avoid being served, the Plaintiff might get special permission to mail it to you.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"></span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"><u><strong>The Plaintiff</strong></u>: The Plaintiff is the creditor that sued you.&nbsp; Is it the original creditor (Discover, Synchrony Bank, American Express, FIA, Capital One, etc). &nbsp;Or, is it a debt buyer (Portfolio Recovery, Midland Funding, CACH, &nbsp;Velocity Investments, Jefferson Capital, etc)?&nbsp; The original creditor can almost always prove you owe the debt. &nbsp;&nbsp;We’ll find out for sure, but going to trial probably isn’t a winning plan.&nbsp;&nbsp; These cases are routinely settled for considerably less than the amount due.&nbsp; Settlement payment plans are common.&nbsp; </span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"></span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\">A debt buyer bought the debt from the original creditor or another debt buyer. &nbsp;&nbsp;They&nbsp;may not have the evidence necessary to win a trial. &nbsp; I've seen debt buyer attorneys show up at trial with literally no evidence at all.&nbsp; They did not sue you to fight.&nbsp;&nbsp; They sued to get a default judgment.&nbsp; If it makes sense in your case, I will work towards a “take-nothing” judgment or get the lawsuit dismissed.&nbsp;&nbsp; If that doesn’t work, these cases are routinely settled for considerably less than the amount due.&nbsp; </span><br></div><div><span style=\"color:#109414;\"></span><br></div><div><span 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