|
When a plaintiff sues someone -- also known as a defendant -- in the court and the defendant fails to respond to the court summons in a limited time period, the plaintiff can request the court and file an entry of default to prevent the defendant from fighting the lawsuit and to get a default judgment. The plaintiff shall make a formal written request to the court for the entry of the default, supported by the attorney's affidavit. The affidavit shall recite the service of the process and copy of complaint on the defendant including the date of service as appears from the return of the process, and that the time within which the defendant may answer or otherwise move as to the complaint. The request and affidavit for entry of default shall be filed together within 6 months of the actual default. This article answers to some of the frequently asked questions on the process of entry of default as it is related to bankruptcy cases. What does a person need to do if he / she receives an entry of default which includes cost and interest after filing bankruptcy under chapter 7?
The person can go ahead and remove the notice and list the total amount mentioned in the judgment. Though in this case, the debt gets listed twice, it would be clear to the creditor and the collecting agency that their debt is being discharged as the person has already filed bankruptcy under chapter 7. What happens after an entry of default is filed?
After filing an entry of default, the plaintiff has to wait for a specific period of time to get the final judgment (default judgment). If the judgment goes unchallenged by the defendant, the plaintiff may file a writ of execution to execute on defendant’s assets, if the judgment is for a particular amount of money. However, if the default is regarding to a mortgage foreclosure, then the writ will lead to a sheriff’s sale of the property. The next course of action after an entry of default request depends largely on the nature of the lawsuit and the nature of default. Does someone have to file a motion to dismiss or file something else with the bankruptcy if the court has already stated the judgment?
There will be no need to file a motion to dismiss the judgment, because the filing of bankruptcy will automatically wipe out the judgment on debt and the creditors can not do anything on this issue. As far as the bankruptcy is concerned, you might have to send the documents to the trustee. The person in debt needs to send the last tax return filed. How does a person list the entry of default in schedule F of the chapter 7 while filing bankruptcy?
The person would have to list the original creditor in the same manner as the other creditors. He / she would have to list separately the name and address of the debt collector and the debt collector's account number for the client. Mention the collection agency / original creditor’s name under the ‘consideration of claim’ box and leave the ‘amount of claim’ box blank, so the same debt does not get added twice. If the court proceedings happened less than one year before filing bankruptcy, then the person would have to include the same information in line 4 of the Statement of Financial Affairs. What needs to be done if the credit card company files a civil suit against its customer stating that is requesting an entry of default?
Since the person has received the original summon and failed to respond or appear the court to challenge the same, the judgment enters against the customer. Now, the company can request for an entry of default and move to collect the debt through garnishment or by freezing assets including bank accounts. The credit card company can even put a lien on the customer’s real estate. However, filing bankruptcy will stop this. The customer in this case should ask a bankruptcy lawyer to be on safe side. Having the right information about entry of default can help individuals deal with difficult situations and make the right decisions during a bankruptcy suit. It is always advisable that you should ask a bankruptcy lawyer while dealing with such matters.
Related Articles -
entry of default, what is entry of default,
| 
