You may have heard about debt relief, also known as debt settlement and debt negotiation. The attorneys at Bowman and Associates can help negotiate with your creditors for you to reduce the total amount of debt that you must pay off. Let the Northern California Debt Relief Attorneys at Bowman and Associates stop creditors from harassing you and help resolve your matter, often at a substantial discount from the original debt.

If you are being sued, you do have options!

Act Quickly

First and foremost, do not ignore the lawsuit and hope that it will go away. If you fail to answer the complaint in a timely manner, creditors can be awarded a default judgment. If a creditor gets a judgment, it can freeze your bank account, garnish your wages and put a lien on any real estate that you own. The judgment can also be reported on your credit report as a public record, even if you later file for bankruptcy.

Answering the complaint involves filing a document with the court called an “answer” and serving a copy of it on the attorney for the creditor. In the answer you can dispute any of the allegations in the complaint. If you file an answer, the creditor cannot get a default judgment, but it will still proceed with the case and seek a judgment later on.

Sometimes filing an answer is the best way to get additional time to determine your best debt solution.

Filing for Bankruptcy as a Remedy

If you qualify for bankruptcy, the lawsuit will be immediately stopped by the filing of the bankruptcy petition.

If the creditor has already gotten a judgment, you can negotiate with the creditor for the payment of the judgment. Sometimes it is possible to engage in debt negotiation and pay a very discounted amount.

Even if the creditor obtains a judgment against you, it is just as dis-chargeable as the same debt prior to entry of judgment. However, the judgment can be reported on your credit report.

Also, if the creditor obtains a lien against your real estate, the bankruptcy will not, by itself, remove the judgment lien. In many cases, however, you can bring a special motion in the bankruptcy proceeding to remove the judgment lien.

Will Bankruptcy Stop Wage Garnishments?

Yes. As soon as a bankruptcy petition is filed, wage garnishments will come to a halt and frozen bank accounts can be unfrozen.

Beware of debt relief companies that promise results that sound too good to be true, because they probably are. In the last few years, the Federal Trade Commission has sued more than a dozen debt relief companies. “They simply lie to consumers,” says the FTC’s Alice Hardy. Don’t take the chance of losing your hard earned money to scam artists.

If you or someone you know has questions about, or will benefit from Debt Relief in Northern California, contact an Experienced Debt Relief Attorney in Sacramento today for your free initial consultation.

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