Help/advice please guys = small claims court hearings

[gavandcarly]

Hello there,

 

I am sure that this forum is not the right place for my question.

 

But because you guys have already helped me a lot, I thought I would post in the off chance.

 

Is there any sites like this that offer legal advice/help in regards to small claims court hearings?

 

An ex partner of mine is taking me to a small claims court this month in regards to a credit card that is in her name and I was an additional card holder, and she is stating that I owe half of the balance.

 

Is there anywhere that I can go for help on this matter?

 

Thanks guys.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Hi, OK give us the full details on the situation,

we have some excellenyt guys and girls who

can help you.

Have you been served with any court papers

yet.?

Would you be able to identify any of YOUR

useage of the card?

What proof do you think she has to back up

her claim??

[gavandcarly]

Thank you so much.

 

Yes the court papers were sent to my mothers address as I now live in Dubai in which she notified me.

 

Therefore I emailed the court to advise them that I live in Dubai, in which I got a response stating that I need to download the allocation questionnaire of the courts website and fill it in, and email it back to the court.

 

I did this, and then my mother received another letter with the court hearing date etc which is in 9 days time.

 

Basically when we lived together she had a credit card with Halifax in her name. She added me as an additional card holder so that I could also use the credit card.

 

The credit card from what I can remember was used to purchase furniture for the house, and a holiday.

 

This was in 2008.

 

I did in the past agree to pay off half of the credit card, and she does indeed have emails of me stating this to her, however there was no formal agreement in writing with a signature etc.

 

We bought a house together and when we split up I requested repeatedly that my name be taken off the mortgage and that she could have the house and I wanted no money from her, as I wanted all ties with her, and she kept trying to contact me and using the house as a way of contact.

 

She kept disagreeing to take my name off the mortgage even though she was living there and I was renting somewhere else.

 

In 2010 she was again requesting that I pay off half of the credit card owned by her.

 

My solicitor sent her a letter stating that I would pay £1200 for the credit card as a gesture of goodwill if she agreed to remove my name from the mortgage.

 

I received no response to this letter.

 

In 2011 she contacted me via email and finally agreed to remove my name from the mortgage.

 

My name has now been removed from the mortgage.

 

However she is again requesting that I pay off half of the credit card which is owned by her.

 

I have no clue as to exactly what has been bought on the credit card as I am unable to see any of the statement as it is not my credit card.

 

My question is legally, in court am I liable to pay off half of a credit card that is not in my name? even though she has emails from me from years ago stating that I will pay half of it?

 

Any help/advice is much appreciated.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Basically you are morally obliged to

pay, but as to legally probably

not as it is the responsibility of the

1st Card Holder to pay the the required

amounts, difficult to say how a judge may

see this.

Wether or not it would be that your offer

of £1200 in the past is an admission of liabilty

again is hard to say.

[gavandcarly]

This is exactly what I thought.....

 

Don't have a clue what I should do, or what my rights are etc.

 

Plus it is hard because I live in Dubai so I can not be there to defend myself...

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

You could file a written defence stating

that you are resident abroad and cannot

attend, an place youself in the hands of

the court, English Civil law is based on

what is fair and reasonable in the eyes

of ''the common man''.

Or make you ex an offer as an out of court

settlement.

[ims21]

Thread moved to Legal Issues

[brokebutnotbeatn]

Post #3 - if you have proof of her removing you from the mortgage (she would have to have remortgaged and I doubt this could be done without your involvement with the exiting mortgage company so have you checked?) then I would see she has lived up to her half of the offer and perhaps its time you stepped up to yours...just my humble opionion of course

[gavandcarly]

I called Nationwide already and they have confirmed that my name is no longer on the mortgage. It was all done through her solicitors I signed a form and returned it and my name was removed.

 

I would of kept to my part of the deal if she had agreed to it when I proposed it to her over a year ago, however she ignored my proposal, and a year later decided she wanted to go ahead with it.

 

I have had to rent properties with my wife because of this.

 

The credit card is hers therefore I feel that it is her responsibility.

 

I have given her the house, and not asked for 1 penny of the money I have put into it.

 

I am in a bit of a dilemma now, i have been trying to call the courts, and email them countless times over the last few weeks to find out when the hearing is and what I need to do with me being in Dubai.

 

They never answer the phone and I am always on hold for 30-45 mins costing me a fortune from Dubai. They don't reply to email either.

 

I found a email address of a customer service manager within the courts on the internet on Friday, so I emailed her and she said she had passed my email on the the Judges Section and they would get back to me with help.

 

Nobody got back to me, so I email the same lady again yesterday to state that nobody had got back to me.

 

Finally a lady emailed me stating that apparently the court hearing was yesterday at 10am, and that I now owe the claimant £1800 plus 245 court fees!

 

I am so angry, the courts never provided me with the hearing date or time, on the allocation questionnaire which I sent back to them it stated that I now live in Dubai and for any correspondence to be sent to my email address.

 

I emailed back stating how angry i was that i was unable to be present or give my evidence, and the women said if i am not happy i have to submit a n244 form and 80 pounds....

 

I asked where the letter was sent to and they stated to the address which is on file, which is the address in which the claimant provided the court with!

 

I find this absurd, can anyone help with this?

 

Please....

[Ganymede]

Hi,

 

Did you agree to sign up for the credit card? Did you sign anything in relation to this?

 

Without seeing the agreement itself I would suspect that if you signed up to a joint credit card then you would be jointly and severally liabile for the debt...

[gavandcarly]

It wasn't a joint credit card, i was simply added as an additional card holder....

[gavandcarly]

Can anyone provide advice as to how I can challenge this judgment, as I don't see how I should be made to pay an amount of money made up by my ex, when I cant even see a statement of the credit card as the bank will not even allow me to see it as the credit card is not mine. I don't even have a clue what she has been using the credit card for....

 

Also can someone give me advice as to how I go about complaining about the court service, for them not providing me with a date/time of the hearing so that I could provide evidence to at least make travel arrangement from Dubai to be present?

 

And help is much appreciated.