Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Maryland

My questions follow the below court documents. I submitted the following Motion to Strike Affidavit of Debt, in the State of Maryland:

DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO STRIKE PLAINTIFF'S AFFIDAVIT

Now comes the Defendant, John Doe, who requests this Honorable Court to Strike the Plaintiff’s 'Affidavit In Support of Complaint':

1.The Plaintiff admits to being a Debt Buyer.

2.The Plaintiff has filed an affidavit of debt.

3.This affidavit pertains to acts and events that allegedly occurred between Defendant and a third party, [Original Creditor].

4.At no time was the creator of the affidavit nor any of the Plaintiff's employees present to witness any alleged acts or creation of the records of transactions occurring between defendant and [Original Creditor].

5.As such said affidavit falls under the hearsay rule (Rule 5-802) and is inadmissible as evidence.

6.Defendant further states that the affidavit is not subject to the hearsay business records exemption because it was not made at or near the time of the alleged acts or events, and;

7.The information contained in the document is merely an accumulation of hearsay, and;

8.Upon Information and belief, the creator of the document in Plaintiff's Affidavit is not currently and has never been employed with [Original Creditor] and therefore cannot have personal knowledge of how [Original Creditor] records were prepared and maintained and;

9.Is unqualified to testify as to the truth of the information contained in Plaintiff's Affidavit.

WHEREFORE, the Defendant prays that the Plaintiff's Affidavit be stricken from the evidence in the above action.

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The plaintiff's attorney responds with:

PLAINTIFF'S OPPOSITION TO DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO STRIKE PLAINTIFF'S AFFIDAVIT

Plaintiff, ______________________, by counsel, opposes Defendant's Motion to Strike Plaintiff's Affidavit. In support thereof, Plaintiff states the following.

1. Defendant's Motion fails to set forth a proper basis for the relief sought.

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests that this Court:

1. Deny Defendant's Motion; and

2. Grant Plaintiff such other and further relief as the nature of its cause may require.

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So what does this mean? I have no idea. Did I do the Motion properly or is this some sort of ridiculous objection. How do I respond to this? Thanks for any help.I submitted the following Motion to Strike Affidavit of Debt, in the State of Maryland:

DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO STRIKE PLAINTIFF'S AFFIDAVIT

Now comes the Defendant, John Doe, who requests this Honorable Court to Strike the Plaintiff’s 'Affidavit In Support of Complaint':

1.The Plaintiff admits to being a Debt Buyer.

2.The Plaintiff has filed an affidavit of debt.

3.This affidavit pertains to acts and events that allegedly occurred between Defendant and a third party, [Original Creditor].

4.At no time was the creator of the affidavit nor any of the Plaintiff's employees present to witness any alleged acts or creation of the records of transactions occurring between defendant and [Original Creditor].

5.As such said affidavit falls under the hearsay rule (Rule 5-802) and is inadmissible as evidence.

6.Defendant further states that the affidavit is not subject to the hearsay business records exemption because it was not made at or near the time of the alleged acts or events, and;

7.The information contained in the document is merely an accumulation of hearsay, and;

8.Upon Information and belief, the creator of the document in Plaintiff's Affidavit is not currently and has never been employed with [Original Creditor] and therefore cannot have personal knowledge of how [Original Creditor] records were prepared and maintained and;

9.Is unqualified to testify as to the truth of the information contained in Plaintiff's Affidavit.

WHEREFORE, the Defendant prays that the Plaintiff's Affidavit be stricken from the evidence in the above action.

================================================================================

=

The plaintiff's attorney responds with:

PLAINTIFF'S OPPOSITION TO DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO STRIKE PLAINTIFF'S AFFIDAVIT

Plaintiff, ______________________, by counsel, opposes Defendant's Motion to Strike Plaintiff's Affidavit. In support thereof, Plaintiff states the following.

1. Defendant's Motion fails to set forth a proper basis for the relief sought.

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests that this Court:

1. Deny Defendant's Motion; and

2. Grant Plaintiff such other and further relief as the nature of its cause may require.

============================================================================

So what does this mean? I have no idea. Did I do the Motion properly or is this some sort of ridiculous objection. How do I respond to this? Thanks for any help.

Why did the judge set my motion for a hearing? I feel that I was very clear in stating the law in the motion. Why can't he/she just make a decision without a hearing?


Asked on 10/03/10, 5:32 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

Phillip M. Cook Cook Legal Services, LLC

I will assume for the purposes of this answer that you are in Circuit Court, not District Court in Maryland. A few thoughts:

Pursuant to Md. Rule of Civ. Pro 2-311, the judge has broad discretion in whether to grant a hearing (or not) on a motion, unless the Rules expressly states that a hearing must be held. It's not uncommon for a judge to call a hearing on a motion, especially if the judge is a little confused about the basis of the motion, wants to hear more facts related to motion, is unfamiliar with the law discussed in the motion and wants to hear more from the attorneys, or something else is going on that and the judge simply wants to use the hearing as a chance to get the parties together.

After reading your motion, it is obvious that you are not an attorney, nor are you represented by an attorney. It is my hunch that the judge read your motion and quickly realized this fact as well. The judge may have called the hearing, in part, to see what's going on, give you a chance to hire an attorney, etc. I STRONGLY recommend that you hire an attorney to either take over your defense completely, or if you decide to go it alone, at the very least, provide you guidance BEFORE you file motions such as these with the Court.

Best of luck.******The above is for informational purposes only and does not create an attorney-client privilege.********

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Answered on 10/08/10, 6:25 am


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