im being sued by the credit union
The most important thing for you do to do is to go to the court hearing prepared. If you don’t go, the creditor will get a default judgment against you; that means that due to your failure to show up, the creditor gets the right to put a lien on your house, bank account, car, etc. and that’s what you don’t want.
In getting ready for your day in court, put together a statement of your outstanding debts (make a copy for your records) so that the judge can see what you owe, and see what type of payment you could make towards the outstanding balance. If you can show him that all you can afford is $10 a month, then he could quite possibly order the judgment for payments of $10 a month. But you need to present evidence that will make that possible.
If you’ve watched any of the "Judge" shows on tv, you’ll notice that the judge is always asking the participants what proof they brought to support their side of the story. Bring not only the listing of your bills, but also bring proof of your income. Show what it was when you bought your car, and then show how it changed so dramatically that made you take back the car. Put your check stubs or bank statements (whatever you’re taking to prove the pay checks) in chronological order so they make sense to the judge as they’re looking at them.
Also, bring verification of your medical condition(s) that shows when you started suffering those problems as part of the reason for your inability to pay as planned. Give the judge enough information about your illness(es) to show that you are still unable to work to get more money that would help you pay off the debt.
Make sure that you take originals, but bring copies to the court too, because the judge may ask if they can keep your paperwork, and after viewing originals will usually only keep copies OR they may require that you provide them originals and you’ll want copies to keep for your records.
Once you’re in court, the judge will call you and the creditor’s representative to the front. You will stand on one side, the creditor’s rep on the other. The judge will ask the creditor what they’re suing for, how much, and why. The creditor will explain their side.
Then it will be your turn. Greet the judge with, "Good morning your honor. I am here, knowing that I owe this money but I have the inability to pay this debt in a lump sum. I would like to request a payment plan be made as judgment. I would like to pay $ (whatever you can) per month towards this debt. I have information for you that I would like you to read to help you to consider my request."
The judge will either ask you questions at that point about your ability to pay, they will go over your paperwork (or maybe not, they may just say they’ll take it under consideration & look at the paperwork later in their chambers) and then, will either pronounce what the judgment will be right then and there, or will tell you it’s under submission. That just means they will be making their decision after the court hearing is over, and they will mail you their decision in the mail.
Be sure to read the judgment carefully when it comes to you in the mail, because if it says you need to pay $10 a month on the 20th each month, you need to make sure the company gets their money each month by that date. If you don’t pay it promptly, or get behind with the plan ordered on the judgment papers then the creditor can come back and file paperwork with the court that will allow him to attach your assets (including your bank accounts) to get his money in full then.
But when you show up to court, that lets the judge know you’re wanting to work something out, so they usually try to work it out to what you request, to give you the benefit of the doubt. Again, don’t default or fail to pay what the judge orders.
Now, if you just can’t pay anything, there are a couple of more options for you. Check with your nearest Consumer Credit Counseling agency. Get an appointment to speak to someone in person. They will go through your personal situation and advise you on what’s best for your financial situation; sometimes they can even mediate an agreement with your creditor to stop these kinds of actions. Sometimes after viewing your personal information they will suggest that you file bankruptcy to dissolve your debts because of the criteria for bankruptcy. They’re experts at what they do, so take their advice carefully with great consideration.
The other thing you can do is to see your local Legal Aid office. They do "pro bono" advice sessions, and you can get some legal advice for free there. That usually involves standing in line with a hundred or so of other people waiting to see a free lawyer, but it’s usually a really good thing to do if you want to be sure of how your situation may go in court. Again, depending on your situation, the lawyer will make advice about what to do that is best for you.
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