I was served on the1st of June for an advertisement i never placed.I was given 20 days to reply to the papers?

Question

I replied, That i never placed the ad. I did not have a pone number which the ad was placed under. Now I've had a certified letter sent to me with a hundred and one questions on it about me giving them my life history. I'm on ssi and i can't really afford a lawyer.

What happens if i don't reply to the discovery questions?

They (the lawyers for the plaintiff) claim that the ad was placed by phone. And the signature was a voice . My address and first name was on the contract, but not my home phone. I want to know what if i don't answer to their request for interrogations ? Or discovery?

I already told them i'm not the one who placed the ad, and why would i place an ad with a phone number i never had? They Know my only means of income is $683 a month. I'm old and i have a illness. WTF? Please help.

Answer 1

I'm not a lawyer so this isn't legal advice. However...

Answer the discovery questions. If you don't, the people pursuing you will get a summary judgment for the amount they claim you owe.

The same basic process occurs often when this sort of situation arises--false use of credit cards, for instance. It's a "he said/she said" situation. They say you placed the ad; you say you didn't. They're trying to determine the likelihood that you did, or didn't. They're also trying to verify who you are.

Since you can't afford a lawyer, call your city or county government and ask for information on legal aid.

One thing I'd be pursuing is: What was the contact information in the ad? What phone number or address was listed? And, in fact, the questions you've received may be an attempt to determine whether you have any connection to that number or address.

Although I'm not a lawyer (and so this is not legal advice), I do very strongly advise you not to ignore the letter and the questions. Do NOT ignore it. If you need more time to answer, respond in writing asking for more time. If you're unable to answer some of the questions, respond in writing that you're unable to respond to those questions. But do NOT ignore the letter. Make a response within the given time frame.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Respond to everything they send you.  Do not provide any personal information.  Dispute everything.  Don't spend hours writing it.  Just do it and send it.  The problems get worse when you just ignore them. Keep calling the newspaper and telling them that you didn't do it.  You are not the only one who got scammed.  They know that. /

Answer 3

What the heck are you babbling about? What ad? What newspaper? You are leaving out a LOT of details.

Answer 4

You are being sued.   If you really are old you know full what happens when one side does not respond to a law suit, the side that is in there pitching wins by default.   You can either let them win or fight it in court.

Not filling out the discovery is contempt of court and they can press charges.   Contempt is both a fine and jail time.

Since you are on SSI they can't garnish your wages after they win, but they can cease accounts (too late to move them, then you are committing fraud) or lien your property.

Since you did not do this you should be OK.   They are saying they have a voice recording of you, it will be obvious it is not you in the court room.    You do not have to use your home phone to place orders, you can use any phone you want.   Your defense about it not being your home phone number will not get you very far.   It was either you who called or it was not.

I am going through a similar law suit.   However, that was indeed me placing the advertising order.   BUT, I was told I was talking to the AT&T Yellow pages and I was not, it was some scam from India.   So now they are suing, stating it does not matter that they misrepresented themselves.

Answer 5

MAKE them take you to court.  DO NOT reply to any questions from the attorney.  They are trying to get personal information to use against you. Someone tried it with me.  Only answer questions from the court.  

Someone took out a credit card in my name 10 yrs ago.  I told the credit card company, the collections agency and then the attorney they got to take me to court (they did, this yr), that I didnt even know the name of the credit card company, that I never had a credit card during that time (never on my credit report) and to take me to court.

They did and they lost.  They could not produce a signature or a contract in my name.  Nor could they produce a check that I supposidly paid one payment with.  I went in armed with my bank statement showing that nothing with the amount they told me was paid, nor on the date was paid, came out of my account.  The judge was not too happy an attorney didnt have proof and took up her time in court.

Once the judge hears the voice and compares it to yours in person, these people will lose.  I too am ill and went in dragging my oxygen with me.  Along with physical effects of Chemo.  What was this ad for?  Dont back down.

Answer 6

I would not give out any of your personal information. I would request they produce the tape of the voice they claim is you. They should be made to prove it was you and drop it if they can't. If you have a consumer advocacy group I would contact one to see if they can help or complain to the better business Bureau.