DO NOT WAIT TO GET HELP

Despite the small improvement in the economy, there are still millions of people facing financial hardship. Millions of people are still in foreclosure. For most people, it is the first time experiencing being the subject of a lawsuit. All too often a person becomes paralyzed by the magnitude of the problem. That paralysis leads to wasted time. Many times, a person facing a lawsuit will eventually go to see an attorney for a consultation, but often they have waited too long and they are then beyond help. When the finally get to see an attorney they have an endless amount of questions, such as:

Q: I received court papers, do I need to do something immediately?

A: Yes you do! You must get to an experienced attorney right away! The longer you wait the harder it will be for you.

Q: Why is that?

A: Look at the legal problem as if it is a cancer. You have a “legal cancer.” The longer you wait to treat that “legal cancer” the worse it gets. If you wait too long, then that cancer will spread to the point where it is no longer able to be treated. If you had real cancer or a real medical emergency, then you would go to the hospital or at least see your doctor, right? Well, then, do not wait any longer. Go see an attorney and at the very least get a consultation!

Q: What will happen if I wait too long?

A: If you wait too long, then your case could progress to the point where you can no longer defend yourself.

Q: But my case is a foreclosure matter, do I have a defense?

A: In many foreclosure cases, yes, the borrower has a defense. However, the defenses to a foreclosure are very technical in nature. If you are not an experienced attorney, then you will most likely never know about these defenses. Furthermore, even if you do know about these defenses, you will not be able to put those defenses in to coherent format so that the judge will fully understand what your defense is.

Q: Well, I did not consult an attorney, but I went to court myself, was that a mistake?

A: Most likely it was indeed a mistake. If you needed surgery, you would not operate on yourself, would you? Well, the same holds true for a lawsuit. Unless you are an attorney who is experienced in that area, you should not even attempt to represent yourself.

Q: Why is that?

A: First, you could end up accelerating the case. This means that your mis-steps in court could do more damage to your case than you intend. While you might be attempting to do the correct thing, and might be attempting to help your case, you could actually be doing fatal damage to your case.

Q: Can you give me an example?

A: Yes. When you go to court for yourself and you actually appear in front of the judge and identify yourself, then you are submitting yourself to the jurisdiction of the court. This could be a mistake right then and there because there is the distinct possibility that the lawsuit was not started properly. If the lawsuit was not started properly, then you have a defense to that lawsuit from square one. However, if you physically appear in court, then you are, by virtue of appearing, stating that you forgive any improper start of the lawsuit.

Q: Well, I appeared in court and I told the judge that I have submitted a loan modification application, was that a mistake?

A: Yes and no. It was a mistake for you to go by yourself, that much is certain. It was not a mistake to tell the judge that you have submitted a loan modification application. However, even if you submitted a loan modification application that fact alone will not slow down the foreclosure case.

Q: Why will that not slow down the foreclosure case?

A: Because the judge is only concerned about the technical rules regarding the lawsuit itself. Any loan modification application is dealing with issues that are outside of the court system. The judge only cares about the issues that are inside the court system. In order to properly deal with those issues you will need an experienced attorney to help you.