Sued By Nelson & Kennard? Here's Help.
You have about 30 days from the day you were served to file a written response, and that's usually enough time.
Miss that deadline and the plaintiff can take a default judgment against you. Respond, and whoever they're filing for has to prove the case, which is harder than it sounds. Here's how, and how I can help.
Nelson & Kennard is not a creditor. It's a Sacramento-based collection law firm that files a high volume of consumer collection lawsuits across California for its clients. Those clients are the real plaintiffs, and they range from original creditors like the big banks to debt buyers that bought your defaulted account in bulk.
That makes the caption on your summons the most important text in front of you. Find the plaintiff Nelson & Kennard is filing for. If it's a debt buyer, the first question in a defended case is whether that company can prove it owns your specific account, with admissible evidence, through every step of the chain. A firm filing at that volume is running a machine built for cases nobody answers, and a defended case is the thing that machine handles worst.
Use the thirty days
From the day you're served, you generally have thirty days to file a written response with the court. If nothing gets filed, the plaintiff can ask for an automatic judgment against you (called a default judgment), and with a judgment they can levy your bank account, meaning they take the money directly, garnish your wages if you have a job, or put a lien on your house. Responding is what makes everything above matter, because a defended case is where the proof gets tested.
Two reads that will help. Here's how to calculate your deadline, which is more particular than people expect. And the top five mistakes people make when they get sued is five minutes well spent before you decide anything.
Let it be my problem
If you'd rather hand this off, the consultation is free, it takes fifteen minutes, and you speak with me directly. No intake screener, no telemarketer. Although the outcome can't be guaranteed, you can offload the process, so you know that whatever can be done is being done while you go about the other things in your life. It's sort of like the alarm clock by your bed. Once it's set, your brain stops holding the time, because that's taken care of. Let me take care of this.