Judgments can be scary, especially when that judgment may result in a wage garnishment or frozen bank account. But what happens if you are on payment plan, almost finished, and get sick and can’t complete it? Well that’s what happened to a research fellow, employed and one of New York City’s most prestigious hospitals.
A couple of years ago this woman was received a civil court lawsuit by Citibank for a credit card debt that ballooned up to $120K. She promptly responded to the lawsuit and had the debt negotiated down to $24k.
She made payments on that amount diligently until she fell ill due to complications for diabetes. The woman was so ill that she was hospitalized and lost several months from work. All of this happened when she had JUST ONE PAYMENT LEFT on the payment plan.
What did Citibank’s lawyer do? You guessed it, they ruthlessly entered judgment against this woman for the entire $124K amount! They then sent her job a notice to begin garnishing her wages.
After her plead to stop the garnishment fell on deaf ears, she finally called the Law Office of Abel Pierre. We promptly also attempted to reason with Citibank’s attorney and explained the scenario and tried to convince him to simply accept the final payment. They refused. We then filed a 13 page memorandum with the court asking the judge to not only vacate the credit card judgment but to allow our client to simply make the final payment.
Reasonable minds prevailed and the judge granted our motion. The court specifically stated that, “…The defendant’s incapacity or over seven months was a reasonable excuse for her default. In addition…the judgment amount compared to the original credit card balance and the final remaining payment constitutes and unconscionable penalty.”
The court gave our client 30 days to make the final payment which she promptly made.
If you are facing a wage garnishment or frozen bank account over a judgment of any kind, big or small, contact the law office of Abel Pierre. We will put over 15 years of experience to work for you!