helloI lost a credit card debt lawsuit.. My questions are these1/ should I spend the money and appeal the case? what is your reccomendation?2/ if the credit card attorneys cannot prove all of the debt, (just some of it), is this strong enough to win on appeal?3/ what are my chances of winning in the state of ohio?4/ the judgement is for 30k, since they have the judgement, would they be willing to negoiate with me?some information to base your advice1/ I have been told my attorney did a good job but still lost. Her case was based upon the fact the plantiff did not prove the first 17K worth of debt. The judge did not care and still ruled against me2/ I have to seek another attorney to do the appeal.. I found an attorney who says there is good basis to get it over-turned because the judge did not follow the law. All of the debt needs to be proven, not just the last 2k3/ some attorneys tell me its a waste of money and do a BK, some attorneys say its a waste of money etc..I am on the fence - should I spend the 4K in retainer fees and fight this or ??thanks Optional Information: State/Country relating to question: Ohio
Good evening! I can help you out with your legal question tonight.
If you owed the debt and used the card, then I would not appeal the judgment.
No, you would only be appealing the debt amount, but you can do that in the same court by doing a motion to reconsider and not a full blown appeal.
Ohio is very strict with credit card companies, but will uphold their contracts if they can show the contract.
Yes, they can still negotiate with you even with a judgment of $30,000. Just because they have a judgment against you, doesn't mean they will collect the money from that judgment, so yes you can still negotiate. Bankruptcy could wipe that debt out entirely.
If the judge did not follow the law, then an appeal may get you a new hearing, but if you owed the debt and the amount is reasonably accurate, I would not encourage you to appeal.
If you have $4,000, it would be better to wipe out the debt and others through bankruptcy, instead of appealing and fighting the debt that you owe (if you agree that you owe it).
Lawyers sometimes lose sight of what makes business sense. If you spend $4,000 and cut the judgment by only that amount, then it makes sense to do it. However, if you spend $4,000 and the judge disagrees with you and validates the debt, you not only lost the $4,000 (or more) in fees, you still have the underlying credit card debt.