Legal Question in Criminal Law in Alabama

Well, first, let me point out that you might want to repost this question under the "credit, debt and collections" or "civil litigation" subject headings since a credit card debt is not a criminal matter. There might be other attorneys who could weigh in on this question who don't receive questions on criminal law subjects.

Secondly, the answer is: it depends. Generally speaking, a civil claim is filed where the Defendant resides, or, if a corporation, where the corporation is registered. Different states have different "long arm" statutes that allow a Plaintiff to sue someone outside the jurisdiction but typically the Defendant would be required to have some kind of "minimal contact" with that jurisdiction.

Is your company registered to do business in this state where the claim was filed? Do you conduct business in that state? If so, yes, you can be sued there.

But if you don't do business there, aren't registered there and you've never even gone into that state, no, they really can't sue you there.

Even though it's a small claims case and you don't want to spend much money fighting it, you should contact a lawyer (if only for just an initial consult) so that he or she can give you a specific answer based on the facts of your case. Good luck!

This answer is based on the limited information given and is for general information purposes only. �Legal advice� is informed advice based on specific facts and knowledge of the complete situation. Therefore, this does not constitute �legal advice�, no attorney-client relationship is created and it should not be regarded as a substitute for direct consultation with an attorney based on the specific details of your situation.