We finally got ride of her but she still owes us somewhere over $700 I just have a ballpark figure right now, i still have to dig up all the bills, but anyways. Just have a couple of questions. First of how does she now that she is to appear in court, does the court take care of that? And what if I don't have her new address, I know where her parents live and where she works, but thats about it. I also have her license plate number, so I dont know if that helps any or not. Another question was what if she doesn't show up, does she get charged with failure to appear in court or what? I don't want her to just slip out of this.
2007-03-31 20:37:32 · 5 answers · asked by bbmx952 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
When you file your claim in small claims court, you may have to pay a fee to have her served with papers. I have no idea how much your local sheriff will charge, but it will be worth the cost if she truly owes $700. You may be able to serve the court papers yourself. If you know where her folks live, you might contact them and tell them you've got some of her things to return to her. They might give you her address. At that point, you will need to send her notice of your case via registered mail, return receipt. Before you file, you'll need to have copies of all the bills your roomie owes you for, as well as a calculation of the total. If you get her served, she will get a court summons. If she does not show up, it will be a default judgment and she will have to pay whatever you say she has to pay. I don't think she will be charged with failure to appear, but she will be stuck with whatever the judge decides she owes.
Remember, in small claims court, you're not there to argue with your roomie, you're there to talk to the judge and explain why she owes the amount you say she does. Have 3 copies of everything, 1 for you, 1 for her, and 1 for the court. Address your comments to the judge and don't get baited into an argument about who did the dishes, took out the trash, etc. If you are organized and professional, you'll get what you're owed. Good luck!
2007-03-31 21:03:41 · answer #1 · answered by bestguessing 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
After you file the claim you have to file a proof of service. But you have to have a valid address for both.Do a little detective work. Questionable address would probably get her a continuance and you may be instructed to do a proper service. If you have proper service and she doesn't show the judge may rule a summary judgment against her. But then you still have to collect.
2007-04-01 04:00:37 · answer #2 · answered by damron 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can have a summons served to her at her job anywhere you know where she's at you can have a summons sent to her or served to her. DMV won't give you any information unless you had a court order and the reason's legit. If she doesnt respond to the summons they can issue a bench warrant for her arrest if she doesnt show. I am in the same predicament with my ex boyfriend since he too left me with with bills totalling around $1500 and he thinks I am to pay them when he ran them up. Your ex roommate will learn she can't just walk out and expect others to clean up the messes she gets herself into.
2007-04-01 10:48:56 · answer #3 · answered by nabdullah2001 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not sure where you live but you could always hire a bailiff to find her and make sure she gets the court appearance papers. All the info you have would definitely be a help to the bailiffs to find her.
2007-04-01 05:29:56 · answer #4 · answered by Repo Man 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i've never been to a small claims court. is it something like judge judy on tv? if it is, that's awesome. u will need to prepare your case and get ur proof ready. i think if it's me, i'll actually call up my attorney friends and ask for some free advice. :D
i wish u good luck and hope u win ur case and get ur money back. remember to ask $ for pain and suffering, and keep all your receipts.
2007-04-01 03:58:15 · answer #5 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋