Missouri  |  Credit and Debt Law

You can still attempt to negotiate a settlement with the debt collector prior to your court date. If they are willing to speak with you it may be possible to work out a settlement at which point you should ask them to dismiss your case with prejudice upon payment. But I would really urge you to hire an attorney to do this for you! An attorney should be able to save you more money overall than they cost and an attorney will make sure that the collector actually has a right to collect the debt. You would be surprised how many times collectors get it wrong! Even if you incurred a debt with company A it is not necessarily true that collection company B now has a right to make you pay.This could be true for several reasons. If you still don't see the benefits of hiring a lawyer, I would advise this: Know the facts, know the law, know your case, get EVERYTHING in writing and don't just roll over. You have rights too!

Jennifer Greene's answer was very good! Hire an attorney!

Once you have received a summons to appear in a civil case in Missouri, you or your attorney must appear unless the parties have agreed in writing to either settle or continue the case prior to the court date; keeping in mind that continuances are granted at the discretion of the court.

Do you have any defenses to the debt? Do you dispute it or any part of it? I would want to know what a client received for their money before I would advise them to pay a debt in its entirety. Feel free to contact me if you want to discuss your options from settlement to trial.

Sean Santoro/Licensed in KS and MO