HSBC obtained default judgment in the USA for a UK debt

[chleb]

Hi,

 

First I must thank you all for such a wonderful repository of information. You have built an amazing community and should be very proud.

 

The Story:

 

I moved to the US in 2007, and left some debt behind. It was a difficult time and I was in turmoil about this debt. Then I discovered this site and learnt that there was essentially nothing they could do. I put that part of my life behind me and forgot about it.

 

Earlier this week I received a letter from a lawyer containing a motion for an issuance of a new Capias. I had no idea what this was so called, and then went to the courthouse to obtain a copy of the file. It turns out that this lawyer had obtained a judgement by default against me in 2011. The documents had been served to an apartment i moved out of in 2007. I had no idea of the existence of this case until this week. Crazily enough, this seems to be perfectly proper service in the US. I have been living my life quite happily for the last 2 years without knowing that I had a civil arrest warrant out on me.

 

Obviously this court has no jurisdiction over the matter and I will seek to have the default judgement vacated. I will then seek damages via the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. I realise this forum may not be the best place for these US-centric questions. I will also pose them to your revolutionary brothers at http://www.debtorboards.com However I would appreciate any input you could give.

 

My Questions:

1. What is the likelihood that HSBC is the actual Plaintiff? Wouldn't the debt have been sold off long ago? This lawyer is a bottom feeding sole trader ambulance chaser. I find it hard to believe he has been engaged by HSBC.

 

2. The complaint is for a fanciful sum in US Dollars. Is this Kosher? Can a debt in one currency be arbitrarily converted to another? Or is this a fraud designed to deceive the court?

 

3. In what order do I properly deal with this? Attend Capias hearing first and then file a motion to vacate? Or should I file a motion to vacate now with the same hearing date as the Capias hearing?

 

4. I intend to make some money from this scumbags sloppiness. Am I required to offer my full defense in the motion to vacate? Can I move to vacate solely on the grounds of not having been served, and then let him dig a deeper hole for himself in subsequent proceedings? Or does doing this mean I will have assented to the courts jurisdiction?

 

5. If #4 is a bad idea can I file a motion to vacate with prejudice? How likely is this to be granted?

 

6. What's the likelihood of a crazy American judge ignoring jurisdiction?

 

7. Will this judgement have been recorded on my credit reports? I have applied for my reports but the credit reporting agencies seen to not know who I am. I have never applied for credit in the US. If this judgement has been reported, is this a breach of the data protection act?

 

8. This debt will be statute barred in about 2 months and I'm feeling litigious. What can I do to punch HSBC in the nose? It seems to me that if HSBC is really the plaintiff then it is a UK company attempting to fraudulently use the US courts to bully and intimidate the counter-party in a UK contract. How do I monetize this naughtiness? LIBOR is still fresh on everyone's minds...

 

I'm sure I have a million more questions but I am still working to educate myself on the intricacies of US law.

 

Any advice you could offer would be most gratefully received!

[Conniff]

Welcome chleb.

 

Not the old send it to the wrong address so we win by default trick. They really are ****.

 

Stick in there, someone will be along.

[cerberusalert]

You can apply to the UK court to have the CCJ set aside as your were no longer a UK resident.

 

1. What is the likelihood that HSBC is the actual Plaintiff? Wouldn't the debt have been sold off long ago? This lawyer is a bottom feeding sole trader ambulance chaser. I find it hard to believe he has been engaged by HSBC.

It depends on the amount but the name of the claimant should be on the CCJ.

 

2. The complaint is for a fanciful sum in US Dollars. Is this Kosher? Can a debt in one currency be arbitrarily converted to another? Or is this a fraud designed to deceive the court?

Monies claimed must be in the currency of the country in which it is claimed + it should show the exchange rate at the time.

 

3. In what order do I properly deal with this? Attend Capias hearing first and then file a motion to vacate? Or should I file a motion to vacate now with the same hearing date as the Capias hearing?

I'd file to vacate now stating that you are applying to have the judgment in the UK set-aside as you were not a resident here at the time of application for judgment and you were not afforded the opportunity to defend as you had no knowledge of the application.

 

6. What's the likelihood of a crazy American judge ignoring jurisdiction?

See; http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?282263-UK-Debt-Living-in-US

 

7. Will this judgement have been recorded on my credit reports? I have applied for my reports but the credit reporting agencies seen to not know who I am. I have never applied for credit in the US. If this judgement has been reported, is this a breach of the data protection act?

The UK CCJ will not be recorded on your US credit file but it will probably show on your UK one as well as http://www.trustonline.org.uk/ which you can check online. If it doesn't show on the Trust site then a CCJ does not exist.

 

8. This debt will be statute barred in about 2 months and I'm feeling litigious. What can I do to punch HSBC in the nose? It seems to me that if HSBC is really the plaintiff then it is a UK company attempting to fraudulently use the US courts to bully and intimidate the counter-party in a UK contract. How do I monetize this naughtiness? LIBOR is still fresh on everyone's minds...

If the CCJ exists the Statute of Limitations doesn't enter into it as such. A CCJ never becomes Statute Barred and it replaces the original CCA agreement. However, if they don't enforce the CCJ within six years their right to do so does unless they obtain the permission of the UK court to continue... which is rarely if ever given

[chleb]

Thanks for the swift response. I do not believe there is a CCJ in the UK. Sorry I should have been clearer, the papers were served to an old apartment in the USA. This is an attempt to collect the debt here, not an attempt to enforce an overseas judgement.

[cerberusalert]

In that case you need to go down the jurisdiction route as in http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?282263-UK-Debt-Living-in-US