Answer a Debt Collector’s Lawsuit Before Default Judgment

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Read the summons, complaint, and every attachment
45 min
Every collection lawsuit travels as a packet, and each part does one job. The summons is the court's cover sheet: it names the court, prints the case number, and states when a response is due. The complaint is the collector's version of events — numbered paragraphs of allegations ending in the total demanded. The exhibits are whatever proof came attached: a card agreement, account statements, an itemized bill, or a bill of sale if a debt buyer purchased the account. Read all three straight through once before writing anything down.
Now extract the fixed facts onto a single sheet titled “Case Facts”. Work through the packet top to bottom:
- Copy the court name and case number from the summons header onto a fresh page headed “Case Facts”.
- Write the plaintiff's full name exactly as captioned, then label its type: original creditor, collection agency, or debt buyer.
- Copy the total amount claimed from the complaint's final demand paragraph.
- List every exhibit by title — contract, statements, bill of sale, itemization.
- Note any hearing or conference date already printed anywhere in the packet.

0/4 done

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