Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Colorado

statuted of limitations to collect credit card debt

My wife received a letter stating that she owed about $1500.00 on an account that was closed 8/92. This is according to a credit report 7/98. This is a collection company. Can they still try to collect? We filed bankrupcty in 98 and it has been discharged but this creditor was not listed. Credit report shows a 0 balance I think.


Asked on 11/28/01, 8:22 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Roger Johnson Roger D. Johnson, P.C.

Re: statuted of limitations to collect credit card debt

Your inquiry requires consideration of the effect of the bankruptcy discharge and also the applicable statute of limitations.

As to the bankruptcy discharge, in some jurisdictions [maybe all] the failure to list a creditor does not necessarily mean the debt is not discharged under circumstances involving a no-asset Chapter 7 case. In Colorado, the debt will likely be discharged, regardless of whether it was listed in the schedules, if the case was a Chapter 7, no-asset case.

However, if the bankruptcy discharge was not effective as to this particular debt, the Colorado 6 year statute of limitations applicable to written debt instruments would seem to bar collection at this point in time. The 6 year statute will likely begin to run on a debt arising from a credit card agreement on the date of the default, i.e., the due date of the first payment immediately following the date the last payment was made, or possibly the date of acceleration of the debt by the creditor [which likely would have occurred shortly after the date of default].

The information reported by the credit reporting company is irrelevant to the question of whether the holder of the debt can collect.

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Answered on 11/30/01, 12:00 pm


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