Judgment information

by Jessica
(Maryland)

In 2011, an old landlord decided to attempt to sue me for $5645.00. I responded to the court with reasons why I was fighting the judgment. I never received anything else until over a year later, when my employer was served with orders to garnish my wages. The original amount was $5645.01, however apparently they were awarded a default judgment in the amount of $10.310.01. I have been fighting this ever since. Is this common for the court to award nearly double the amount originally requested? Is it legal? This is not attorney's fees or court costs--just the amount awarded. We live in Maryland. Any advice would be appreciated!! Thank you!

Comments for Judgment information

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Oct 31, 2015
 Inflated judgment
by: DebtCollectionAnswers.com

It's hard for us to say because we don't practice law and don't know how they arrived at this figure, but it does sound excessive. (And Maryland is considered somewhat more debtor friendly than other states when it comes to debt collection lawsuits.) Were you not in court when the judgement was awarded? Were there some kind of additional damages awarded?

Unfortunately in most states interest can be charged on judgments as well so it's possible this amount can grow even larger if you can't resolve it quickly. And it's our understanding Maryland allows for wage garnishment as well as property seizure (i.e. bank accounts) in most cases.

We don't know what your financial situation is but judgments can sometimes be negotiated for a lesser amount if you can come up with a lump sum. If you can't afford to pay much toward this, we would urge you to at least talk with a consumer bankruptcy attorney to find out whether you can wipe this debt out in bankruptcy before they go after your wages or bank accounts. You can get a a free initial evaluation with a bankruptcy attorney.

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