How to Answer a Credit Card Debt Collection Lawsuit

March 2025
Thomas Fox, J.D.
thomas@foxparalegalservices.com
TEXT ONLY: 502-230-1613

Introduction

In every American jurisdiction, answering a common lawsuit is a required step. It's a crucial part of standard civil litigation. Some small claims courts do not require written answers. Rather, you are required to show up in court on an appointed day and proceed directly to trial on the merits. 

An "answer" is a well-defined type of court document. Answers are one of a small group of court documents known as "pleadings," along with complaints, counterclaims, and a few others. Some states use different names for the various standard pleadings. An answer may be called a "response" or "reply" in your state.

The need to file an answer arises when you have been sued and a complaint has been filed against you. Complaints are also known as petitions or statements of claim. A complaint tells the court what you did wrong, and the answer is your defense.

You automatically lose if you do not file an answer after being sued. This is known as a "default." The court will issue a default judgment giving the plaintiff everything they asked for. Once a judgment has been entered against you, the plaintiff can garnish your wage and bank accounts and put a lien on your house. Most authorities agree that answering a lawsuit is always the best action, even if alternatives such as bankruptcy or a negotiated settlement are better than litigation as a long-term solution. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has said, "If a debt collection lawsuit is filed against you, respond by the date specified in the court papers. . . . To preserve your rights, respond and don’t ignore the lawsuit."

The primary purpose of filing an answer is to avoid a default judgment. This buys you time to figure out what to do next. Being sued for credit card debt can be an extended process with several steps. The complaint and answer steps are just the first phase.

It is *never* a good idea to ignore being sued. No good can come from it, and help is available without spending a fortune for a lawyer. Although corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs) usually must be represented by a lawyer, pro se litigants are common in state civil proceedings. Self-representation is a legal right protected in both state and federal courts.

In other words, *always* file an answer when you are sued. It is a low-risk option.

How Real is Real?

First, have you actually been sued?

Fake service of process happens.

I am reminded of an online group discussion about various tricks, frauds, and scams. One member recounted how someone impersonating a county sheriff’s deputy—complete with uniform and badge—knocked on their door one evening to deliver bogus court papers. I encouraged her to look into it more deeply because it didn’t sound like a hoax to me.

It wasn’t.

It turned out to be a real lawsuit, a real deputy sheriff, a real summons, and a real complaint. They had, in fact, been properly served. Their deep skepticism toward scammers had made it difficult for them to believe the service was legitimate.

This kind of mistake isn’t as absurd as it might seem. When the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) became law in 1978, 15 U.S.C. § 1692e(1) & (13) made it unlawful for debt collectors to mislead consumers by:

• Falsely representing that they are affiliated with the state, including the use of uniforms, badges, or similar facsimiles.
• Falsely implying that documents are legal process.

Congress banned debt collectors from pretending to be deputy sheriffs delivering fake court summonses because that’s exactly what they had been doing to deceive people. Recognizing the difference between fake and genuine legal debt collection is increasingly difficult, but the fake is a problem only because the real thing exists.

Be skeptical, but also read the fine print. As Ronald Reagan said, "Trust, but verify." That means placing initial trust in someone or something while taking steps to confirm their accuracy and reliability. Doing your due diligence is not difficult. You have a telephone—use it. Call the courthouse and ask if you’ve been sued. They will tell you.

Having a deputy sheriff personally deliver a summons and complaint is one way to perfect service of process, but it is not the only way. There are a few different methods to perfect service, and every state authorizes a different combination of alternatives.

Service of Process

We cannot emphasize enough your need to locate your own state civil procedure rules to be well-informed. Here are a few of the possible ways you might be served. Service of Process is what lawyers call providing notice of a  lawsuit by delivering a Summons and Complaint. Not all states do it the same. There are variations and different combinations.

• Personal service with delivery by deputy or authorized process server.
• Leaving a copy of the service at the last known place of residence.
• Service by delivery to adult resident at defendant's address.
• By certified mail.
• Service on an authorized agent.

Sometimes, the court will authorize service by newspaper publication. Service by publication typically involves publishing only a notice of the lawsuit, not the entire complaint.  The full details of the claim are accessible through the court once the you are aware of the lawsuit.

Each state has its own set of civil procedure rules governing service of process, so it's crucial to consult the relevant state rules and statutes.

The Rules for Answering a Complaint

You can prepare an answer once you have a copy of the complaint. The rules for answering a complaint are simple. A typical answer has three basic divisions.

1. Admissions and denials.
2. Affirmative and other defenses. and
3. Counterclaims.

Admissions and denials are crucial to avoid a default judgment, especially the denials. If you do not file an answer, the court will assume that the claims made in the plaintiff's complaint are all true. If what the plaintiff claims is true . . . you lose, and voila! . . . a default judgment is automatic. Affirmative defenses and counterclaims may be useful and important, but they are much more difficult to explain and understand.

Faced with an emergency deadline, complete the admissions and denials portion of an answer and work on the other parts if there is time. A basic answer will fit on two pieces of paper, which allows you to mail a copy to the defendant's lawyer for a single First Class postage stamp. Many courts provide a standard form to use, but if there is no form, you can print your own with any word-processing app you like. Lawyers typically use Microsoft Word, which can save files in its own *.docx format or as Adobe's PFD file format. There are dozens of word processing apps available that function the same way, and many are free.

We often use Google's online Documents application.

There are two standard court document layouts. One requires each page to have 28 numbered lines down the left margin. This is called "pleading paper," but the 21st Century word processing apps can re-create it on the fly. You don't need to buy special printing paper. This 28-line pleading paper format is used in Western states such as California, Arizona, Montana, Nevada, and others. The majority of states use ordinary blank paper. We can provide template files for both types, but you must verify which type your court requires.

Admissions and Denials

The plaintiff's complaint will present a series of consecutively numbered paragraphs that may be divided into groups. For example, the groups may be:

• Statement of Facts,
• Jurisdiction and Venue,
• Count I - Breach of Contract on Open Account
• Count II - Account Stated
• Count III - Unjust Enrichment  
• Relief Sought

Your answer must respond to each paragraph by reference to its paragraph number.

Your Options are:

1. Defendant admits,
2. Defendant denies, or
3. The defendant lacks sufficient knowledge or understanding of legal terminology to either admit or deny the allegation. (i.e. I don't know)

General Rules for Answers

1. In an answer, a defendant must briefly explain their defenses to each claim.
2. An answer should either admit or deny the statements made in a complaint.
3. If you lack enough knowledge to believe an assertion, you must say so. This counts as a denial.
4. Denials must address the substance of the allegations denied in a balanced manner.
5. A pleader must clearly state what is true and important if he wants to deny only part of a statement. Then, he can deny the rest.
6. The pleader may choose to contest everything in the earlier pleading.
7. You can also deny selected statements or paragraphs.
8. If you contest every claim, you can do so with a general denial, but only in good faith.

The process of answering a complaint is to go through each numbered paragraph of the complaint and either admit it or deny it. or claim lack of knowledge. To claim lack of enough knowledge to either admit or deny one of the plaintiff's allegations is treated the same as a denial. What you deny in your answer is your defense. What you admit are your concessions.  Since the plaintiff has the burden of proving his claim, what you deny forces the plaintiff to provide evidence of why he should be believed.

The second main division of an answer is affirmative and other defenses.

Affirmative Defenses

Affirmative defenses are a large and poorly defined collection of legal doctrines of avoidance and justification. Presenting an affirmative defense does not deny the plaintiff's claims as happens with an answer's first defense of admissions and denials. An affirmative defense in civil litigation is a legal response that uses new evidence to avoid or reduce the defendant's legal liability. It's based on facts that are different from those in the plaintiff's complaint. The defendant has the burden of proving an affirmative defense. Some affirmative defenses, such as the statute of limitations, can result in complete dismissal, while others may merely reduce the amount owed.

A successful affirmative defense can completely or partially absolve the defendant of liability. Affirmative defenses can defeat a claim even if the plaintiff's allegations are true. Affirmative defenses often present very complicated legal and factual issues beyond the abilities of self-represented, untrained non-lawyers, but their impact can be decisive. They should not be overlooked by pro se defendants. There is a small collection of affirmative defenses standard to credit card debt collection litigation that can be routinely preserved in your answer.

"Other defenses" consist of defenses that may be waived if not asserted by motion or included in your answer:

• Plaintiff's standing to sue,
• statute of limitations,
• lack of personal jurisdiction,
• improper venue,
• insufficiency of process; and,
• insufficiency of service of process.

These instructions do not cover your option to file pre-answer dispositive motions to dismiss. Many debt lawsuits contain defects (e.g., the plaintiff lacks standing, the statute of limitations has expired, or service was improper). Objections to personal jurisdiction and improper service must typically be raised at the outset, or they may be waived. In some cases, filing a motion to dismiss before answering may be the best course of action. However, the goal of this booklet is not to guide you to the best possible outcome but to help you navigate and survive the debt collection process without a lawyer. If you can afford to hire an attorney, you will likely achieve a better result than going it alone.

Although the plaintiff has the burden to allege personal jurisdiction, venue, process, and service, the plaintiff's burden to prove these issues is not triggered absent the defendant's objections. The lesson is to object just to be safe. You can always withdraw the objection later if doing that is to your advantage.

Counterclaims

The third major aspect of an answer asserts counterclaims. As the name suggests, a counterclaim is a separate but related claim that a defendant may have against a plaintiff. For example, if a debt buyer qualifies as a "debt collector" under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and its debt collection practices in connection with the credit card debt the debt buyer is suing upon, the defendant may be able to assert those FDCPA violations as counterclaims, depending on your state.

These instructions do not cover counterclaims.

Conclusion

The remainder of your answer is a request that the court rule in your favor and against the plaintiff, to be awarded any relief to which you may be entitled, that you recover your costs, a signature block, and a certificate of service. Check your court’s filing requirements, as some jurisdictions require electronic filing, proof of service, or additional documentation beyond simply mailing the answer.

Then,

• print copies
• sign them
• serve a signed copy to the plaintiff's lawyer as your jurisdiction requires, and
• file an original signed copy with the court.

That's it.  Good luck.

If you have questions, contact me.

Thomas Fox, J.D.
thomas@foxparalegalservices.com
TEXT ONLY: 502-230-1613