How to File a Response to a Debt Lawsuit
This article is part of a step-by-step guide to debt collection lawsuits in Oregon. Go here to read the guide and see related articles.
Responding to a debt lawsuit can be an important step to protect your rights. If you don't respond, the court may decide the judge may decide against you without hearing your side, called a default judgment. This can allow the person or business that sued you to take money from your paycheck or bank account.
For more on what to consider before deciding to respond, read this article.
Continue reading to learn the steps for filing a response to a debt collection lawsuit.
Write your response.
Your response to the lawsuit against you is called an answer. It is your way of telling the court your side of the story. When the other side started their lawsuit, they give the court a legal paper called a complaint. They were also supposed to deliver a copy of the complaint to you. The complain has a list of statements that the person suing you is telling the court is true. The answer is your chance to respond to each of these.
Your answer should include:
- A clear statement saying whether you agree or disagree with the claims in the complaint. You can:
- Admit if a statement or claim is correct.
- Deny if a statement or claim is wrong.
- Say you don't know if you're unsure about a claim
- Any legal defenses you have. A defense is a legal reason you don't have to pay, such as:
- The debt is not yours.
- The amount the creditor claims is incorrect.
- The debt is too old to be collected (this is called time-barred). Learn more about time-barred debts here.
Get the right forms.
Start by contacting the court where the lawsuit is and asking if they have an answer form.
- Find your court's contact information here. Make sure it is the same county as the one listed on the complaint.
- They may have a sample form at the courthouse or on their website.
- You may need to create your own document.
Turn in your response to the court.
Give your completed response to the court where the lawsuit was filed. You may need to pay a filing fee to file your answer. The court can tell you how much your fee is.
If you can't afford a filing fee, you can ask the court to file without paying the fee or to pay it later.
- To do this, you must file a form called an "Application and Declaration for Deferral or Waiver of Fees."
- Ask the court for a copy of the form, which is also known as a fee waiver application.
- You can download a copy of the fee waiver form from the court's website here.
Give a copy to the other side.
Send or give a copy of your response to the other side (they are called the plaintiff) or their lawyer. This is called service or serving the other side with your response.
Take note of when, where, and how you served the other side. If you sent them copies of your forms by mail, send them using "certified mail." That way, you will get proof that the forms were delivered.
You will need this proof because you must also file a form called a "Certificate of Service" with the court swearing that you delivered the copies. Ask your court for this form.
Keep a copy for yourself.
Make at least one copy of your response and the proof of service form. Keep these for your records in case you need to refer to them later.