North Carolina Bankruptcy Legal Questions

I am sorry but you do not post enough information in order to enable me to frame an intelligent answer. What are you trying to collect? Why do you believe that you can only recover 3 years' worth of funds? The statute of limitations in Pennsylvania (since you are alleging money of some kind is owed) is 4 or 6 years for contract-type situations (as opposed to negligence). So I do not understand why this would be 36 months/3 years. There is no 3 year statute of limitations set forth in the judicial code, so unless its somewhere else, its unclear what kind of dues you are seeking to collect. There are a few types of liens that can be imposed pre-judgment - examples would be liens of materialmen (such as people who improve your property) or car mechanics. Some property owners' associations can impose liens if the HOA dues are not paid. These types of liens have to be followed up by litigation of some type. If this action is not something where a pre-judment lien would be authorized then a lien cannot exist. However, the lack of a lien should not determine how far back you can seek recovery.... Read More

Yes and no. Statutes of limitation govern when a person who has a claim must sue. After entry of judgment, the statute is irrelevant. Judgments last FOREVER. However, there are restrictions as to how long a judgment can be enforced through the execution process. For example, in NC, judgments can be enforced against real and personal property (including bank accounts) for 10 years unless renewed. If renewed, then the judgments remain in force for another 10 years. In PA, judgments against real property remain in force for 5 years but can be renewed every 5 years. For personal property judgments are good for 20 years. In GA, judgments are good for 7 years but can be renewed. In your case, the judgment was entered in 2004 so the statute of limitations has nothing to do with this. your bank account was seized, which means that you did not seek to file exemptions (if applicable) or otherwise protect your account. You would be foolish to put any more money in that account and have it at risk of seizure. If you filed bankruptcy, the judgment could only be discharged if you filed a motion with the bankruptcy court to avoid the judgment lien. While this can be done, I don't know what kind of assets/income you have. Judgment liens can only be avoided to the extent that they impair your exemptions. Your exemptions will vary, depending on which state you are in, and if you have a lot of assets, a bankruptcy would not make sense at all. I have another suggestion - why don't you just settle this debt? Its going to cost you around $2000 to $2500 to file bankruptcy if this is in NC. It may be possible to settle the debt for close to that! Please contact me or another attorney if you wish to discuss resolution of this debt in a no-bankruptcy context.... Read More

You do not provide a lot of information and its impossible to know what is really going on. I would urge you to consult with an attorney, depending on the answers to the following questions: Why did you receive a check from an insurance company? Did you have a claim of some kind? Why was there a stop payment placed on the check? Did the insurance company advise you that the check was issued in error and not to cash it? If you knew the payment was stopped, why did you cash the check? Who is now after you, the bank or the insurer? The simple thing to do is refund the money if you were not entitled to it or work out some kind of payment agreement. You have not related anything which would suggest criminality (and you should not further discuss this on a public message board) but if it can be shown that there was some type of insurance fraud, then that would be a crime. Whether you would go to jail or not depends on a lot of factors (what kind of offense would ultimately be convicted of and whether you have a prior record). Also, good criminal defense lawyers may be able to get any criminal charges dismissed if there is restitution. If there is any potential insurance fraud then I would seek advice from a criminal law attorney. If you are not at that stage then a consumer lawyer may be able to help you work out a payment agreement.... Read More

Did you buy the car and then do an inspection of the vehicle? If you bought the car then there is no right to rescind the contract. Read the contract - some car dealers will allow you to return the car (I know Carmax has a return policy, but there may be other dealers who do as well). If there is no policy, then see if the dealer will be willing to fix/repair the radio as a customer service gesture. You do not indicate whether the car was new or used (I assume its used) or whether the car was sold "as is" or with any kind of a warranty. If the car is still covered by any kind of a warranty, does it extend to cover the radio? If the car was sold "as is" that means what it says - the car was sold in whatever condition it was in at the time of purchase. It was up to you to check out the vehicle thoroughly and do an inspection (or have one performed by an independent mechanic) before you signed the purchase agreement. Your only out might be if the dealer had some kind of pre-sale inspection program and this was something that would ordinarily have been checked as part of that program. Otherwise, you will have a very hard time establishing that the dealer was aware of this problem and deliberately sold the car to you in this condition. Your other out might be if you financed the car. Most car dealers, if you applied for financing at the dealership, will submit an application for financing to lenders. Its up to the lenders as to whether to accept or reject. If the lenders all refuse to finance you then you will have to either find another way t o pay for the car or bring the car back.... Read More

Yes and no. Creditors cannot discuss debts with third-parties under the PA Fair Credit Extension Uniformity Act. However, you are wrong about your mother's debt. It was NOT your responsibility. This is your mother's debt and is an expense of her estate. The funeral home should file a claim with your mother's estate. You do not indicate whether your sibling is the executor of the estate or even whether an estate was probated. And a funeral home is not a lender. Unless there is a written agreement that payments would be acceptable, the bill is to be paid in a lump sum. You also indicate that the bill is in default. Is it? The funeral home cannot just put a lien on your home. They would have to first get a judgment against you. Is your mother's estate pending in PA? Is the funeral home located in PA? If not, the funeral home may not have been aware of PA law, which applies to original creditors. I can't speak to the laws of states where I am not admitted, but not all states have laws which apply to original creditors like this. You should consult with a lawyer specializing in violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and PA's equivalent law to see if the law was violated here. If it was, PA allows you to recover treble damages, but rather than sue, you may be able to use that as a bargaining chip. However, if an estate was probated for your mother then the funeral bill needs to be an estate expense.... Read More

See the statute below. The statute makes it clear there does not have to be a contract. Horses are not like cats and dogs. The veterinarian has to be called out to see the horse as the horse cannot be taken to the vet's clinic. And I don't understand how treatment for two different clients could be combined on one bill. Was there another horse owned by the same person or were these 2 different horses owned by two different people? If the latter, why would the vet be unwilling to correct an obvious mistake like that?Something is missing from this story. As per the statute, the vet had a lien on the horse for the care provided. If there was a genuine dispute, the owner could pay and then sue to get the money back or file a complaint with the Georgia Veterinary Board. While the statute does provide a lien on the horse, the vet's conduct in question seems a bit extreme. I would contact the Georgia Veterinary Board; while they do not get involved in fee disputes, they could advise whether it was permissible for the vet to assert the lien by physically trespassing and taking the animal. ? 44-14-490. Lien for treatment, board, or care of animal; right to retain possession (a) Every licensed veterinarian shall have a lien on each animal or pet treated, boarded, or cared for by him or her while in his or her custody and under contract with the owner of the animal or pet for the payment of charges for the treatment, board, or care of the animal or pet; and the veterinarian shall have the right to retain the animal or pet until the charges are paid. (b)(1) As used in this subsection, the term: (A) "Charges" means: (i) Any charges, fees, expenses, and reimbursements which have been contracted for, agreed to, or otherwise mutually acknowledged by written agreement, course of conduct, or understanding, including but not limited to: (I) Board, care, services, and treatment of the animal or pet, whether provided by the operator or by a third party and incurred by the operator; (II) Farrier and veterinary fees and expenses incurred by the operator for or on behalf of the boarded animal or pet; and (III) Fees and expenses for transportation of the animal or pet; and (ii) Late payment fees, returned check fees, and all costs of collection, including but not limited to reasonable attorney's fees and expenses of litigation and costs of sale.Charges shall not include fees, expenses, or commissions of any kind relating to purchase, sale, or lease of such animal or pet, other than a sale pursuant to Code Section 44-14-491. (B) "Facility for boarding animals or pets" shall include, but not be limited to, veterinary hospitals, boarding kennels, stables, livestock sales barns, and humane societies. (2) Every operator of a facility for boarding animals or pets which facility is licensed by the Department of Agriculture, other than a licensed veterinarian, shall have a lien on each animal or pet in his or her care for the payment of all charges of such operator; and the operator of such a facility shall have the right to retain the animal or pet until the charges are paid in full.(c) Any person granted a lien by this Code section may waive such lien in writing.... Read More

From your post, it does not sound like you sustained physical bodily injury in any way. If that is thge case, you are not talking about negligence but breach of contract. You must have signed documents which discuss the rights of the parties and which may address your right to a refund. If you have documents, read them carefully to see if they talk about this. Generally incidental and consequential damages of the type that you incurred (costs of travel, pet sitter etc.) are not going to be recoverable. And you have not stated anything which would show that the hospital breached the contract, so based on the very limited information you presented, it sounds like you are not entitled to any compensation. I don't understand your comments regarding a third-party lender. If you borrowed the funds why does this have anything to do with whether the hospital breached the contract with you? Either they violated some condition which would make them liable or they did not. However, this is not my area of law and there may be something in the documents or other facts which you did not relate which would require a different result. I recommend that you consult with a general civil litigation attorney. If the clinic is in Florida, then I would consult with an attorney in Florida as there may be jurisdictional issues with suing in Georgia.... Read More

This sounds like a very empty threat. People purchase items on credit and move across state liens all of the time. This company is using some very aggressive means to attempt to collect the debt. I suggest you contact an attorney to discuss potential unfair debt collection claims. It is illegal to claim to be in the midst of doing something they have no intention of doing.... Read More

To be legal, the payday lender has to either register with the state or make loans at the statutory rate of interest of 6%. It is not profitable for payday lenders to make loans in compliance with the law. Payday lenders who attempt to circumvent the law by charging excessive interest are usually overseas or tribal lenders. By suing you, the payday day lender would expose themselves to criminal sanctions. It's like a drug dealer suing you for the value of the drugs you bought but did not pay for. So a lawsuit or criminal charges are very unlikely and PA has no process like in NC of GA for companies to take out a criminal warrant. And don't believe the illegal lender. Neither civil nor criminal process works like that. I suggest that you contact the PA attorney general.... Read More

This question has nothing to do with debt resolution and should be directed to a business/tax attorney. Every state has a business corporation law which discusses how a business' affairs are wound up if the company wishes to cease doing business. A certificate of dissolution must be filed with the Secretary of State's office in the state where the business was organized or doing business. If you wish to continue doing business in anything other than your own name (i.e., as in Joe Smith d/b/a Vacations 'R' Us"), there is a requirement that you register the fictitious name. It could be filed in the county register of deeds or court's office. Again, consult with a business law attorney in the state where you conducted business. If you have any tax issues, consult with your CPA or a tax attorney. If the LLC had its own tax id number, then something may have to be filed with the IRS or state revenue department. If it was under your own social security number, nothing should change except that you would now file any schedules required of sole proprietors.... Read More

I would need to see the whole document to which you are referring. I cannot interpret a phrase that may be taken out of context. If this is a credit report, it means a judgment was entered and paid. If its a court order of some kind, it may mean that payment was received after judgment was entered. If its a letter from a creditor offering to resolve a debt, it appears that a judgment was entered and the parties have agreed to settle the debt for an amount that is smaller than the total judgment and the amount was paid. You need to take whatever this is to an attorney and pay him/her to review it. If you are an NC resident, I can review it for you for a flat reasonable fee. Please contact me if interested.... Read More