Midland Funding: Showing Up is Half the Battle

Recently a couple of cases I have had against the debt buyer Midland Funding have proven that sometimes showing up truly is half the battle.  Most people that get sued by Midland Funding or one of the other debt buyers don’t show up.  In fact, they fail to respond in any matter whatsoever and a default judgment is entered.  Basically the court takes the position that if you disagreed with what the debt buyer was alleging – that you owe a debt – you surely would have taken time to respond and contest their allegations.

You didn’t, so the court entered judgment against you.  Over 90% of these cases end up in a default judgment.

However, if you simply respond to the lawsuit you have a decent shot at winning it.  On more than on occasion when I have gone to the trial for the clients I represent and Midland Funding has been unable to present their case.  Typically they run into problems with having their witnesses available to testify, having their documents/exhibits ready to go, or sometimes simply fail to show up all together.

If any of these things happens you need to be there to ask the court to dismiss their case.  If you aren’t there, it is likely the court will continue the trial to a later date.  But if you simply show up you can request that it be dismissed.  After all, you are there on the day set for trial.  You are ready to go.  If the tables were turned and you didn’t show up it is highly unlikely that you would be given the courtesy of a new trial date.  In my experience when your request is presented in those terms it is difficult for the court to do anything but dismiss the case.

One final thing, if the court does dismiss it, make sure they dismiss it with prejudice. This means that it can never be brought again and Midland Funding is out of your life for good.  Have any of you had similar experiences at trial with a debt buyer?

Image Credit: Practicalradical