Debt Collection / Lawsuit / Massachusetts

How to Answer a Debt Summons Lawsuit in Massachusetts

Written by Ascend Team
Updated May 16th, 2024
The information provided in this article does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal or financial advice; instead, all information, content, and materials available in this article are for general informational purposes only. This article may contain affiliate links that helps support this website.

You may have received a bankruptcy attorney mailer stating that you are going to receive a debt collection summons. Or potentially, a sheriff served you the physical summons at your Massachusetts residence. 

Firstly, is the debt your debt? In the lawsuit, did they provide any proof that it's your debt. 

If it is your deb, the purpose of this article is to relieve you from this debt burden. We will also cover how you may be able to get your lawsuit dismissed.

  1. Is the debt collection lawsuit within Massachusetts debt statute of limitations?
  2. Take a Massachusetts debt relief options calculator that helps you understand your options.
  3. What does it mean to respond to a debt collection lawsuit in Massachusetts?
  4. Will you have to pay a filing fee?
  5. How to respond to a debt collection lawsuit in Massachusetts
  6. Alternatives to responding to a debt collection lawsuit
  7. What happens if you don’t respond to the Massachusetts debt collection lawsuit?
  8. What should you do?

Also, this article is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. If you’d like legal advice, you can add your information here for a free consultation with attorney near you

I don’t have the physical summons

If you do not have the physical summons, you can access that for free online. Firstly, you may search “Your County Name, Massachusetts Civil Cases Search”. 

Your search should bring up your county’s civil court case search. From there, you may be able to search with your name or within the last 7 days. Debt collection lawsuits may have a "CV" in case ID and the description may include "Collections Limited". If you have trouble finding your case, please give us a call or text at 833-272-3631, and we can troubleshoot with you (100% complimentary).

1. Is the Debt Collection Lawsuit within Massachusetts Debt Statute of Limitations?

If the debt is past the statute of limitations for debt in Massachusetts, it may mean that the time frame which a creditor can legally sue you to collect on that debt has expired. For example. here is the statute of limitation for debt in Massachusetts.

StatuteTimeSource
Collection of Debt6 YearsCh. 260 §2
Written Contract6 YearsCh. 260 §2
Oral Contract6 YearsCh. 260 §2
Enforcement of Judgment6 YearsCh. 260 §2
Assault and Battery3 YearsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 260, § 4 (2020)
Wrongful Death3 YearsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 229, § 2 (2020)
Fraud3 YearsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 260, § 2A (2020)
Libel3 YearsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 260, § 4 (2020)
Trespassing3 YearsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 260, § 2A (2020)
Professional Malpractice3 YearsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 260, § 4 (2020)
Medical Malpractice3 YearsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 260, § 4 (2020)
Personal Property3 YearsMass. Gen. Laws ch. 260

Debt collection lawsuits are often regarded as written contracts. So, the Massachusetts written debt law below (Source: Ch. 260 §2):

Section 2. Actions of contract, other than those to recover for personal injuries, founded upon contracts or liabilities, express or implied, except actions limited by section one or actions upon judgments or decrees of courts of record of the United States or of this or of any other state of the United States, shall, except as otherwise provided, be commenced only within six years next after the cause of action accrues.

Let’s next cover alternatives to responding to the debt collection lawsuit.

2. Take A Free Debt Relief Options Calculator

Okay, so it's your debt, and it's within the statute of limitations. 

What are your options? 

Yes, you can respond, and we will cover that option later, but feel free to take the free debt relief calculator we created below that will ask questions to provide a holistic estimate of the potential cost and duration of various options to deal with the debt. 

The calculator is 100% free and does't require an email address (unless you want further analysis).


What Does It Mean To Respond to A Massachusetts debt collection lawsuit?

In Massachusetts, you have a certain number of days to respond to the debt collection lawsuit. We will cover how to respond later, but your response timeline is very important to know, so we are going to cover that first.

Generally, the response timeline start from when you receive the summons. So, if you have not received the summons, your clock may not have started. Obviously, you’d want to read the summons information for the most up to date information, but that is generally how it works.

Specifically, in Massachusetts, here’s the response time:

20 days

Generally, this is in calendar days, so you may want to answer the summons as soon as possible after you receive it. 

The court address may be on the summons for the response. You may want to or have to send to the plaintiff attorney as well.

If small claims court (< $7000), you may not have to file answer, but is a good way to tell the court your side of story

Does Massachusetts have filing fees for the response?

In some states, you have to pay an answer filing fee. This filing fee might be paid when you mail your response. The entity below can help you calculate whether there's a filing fee.

Here's the filing fee information we have for Massachusetts. For the most recent information, you may want to check this Massachusetts government website covering filing fees.

 We could not find a filing fee, but you may want to check our government source website.

Let's next look at the step by step process to respond to a debt collection lawsuit, but if you need help responding to a debt collection lawsuit, consider checking out the entity below that creates a response document, PDF download, filing fee calculation, does the document filing in 1-6 days, and provides status updates.

Check Price

How To Respond To a Debt Collection Lawsuit in Massachusetts

Now, let’s cover how to respond to respond to the debt collection lawsuit for free in Massachusetts.

1. Review the Lawsuit and Gather Information

The first step in responding to a debt collection lawsuit in Massachusetts is to carefully review the lawsuit and gather information. It can be helpful to understand the nature of the debt, the amount owed, and the original creditor or debt collector. 

You may also review any documentation related to the debt, such as account statements, payment records to confirm whether the debt is within the Massachusetts debt statute of limitations (which we will discuss below), and correspondence with the creditor or debt collector.

2. File a Response with the Court

After reviewing the lawsuit, you need to file a response with the court within within a specific number of days.

  1. The summons should have the exact amount of days that you have, but at the time of this writing, it may be days (source) form the day that you received the summons.
  2. You would then write a formal response on a form where you may agree, deny or do not understand. You may use a free response form by clicking on the link below.
    • I Admit
    • I Deny
    • I Do Not Understand, Therefore I Deny.
  3. Next you would raise any any defenses or counterclaims that you have.
  4. You would pay the answer filing fee if there is one in Massachusetts and then you would either mail your response or e-file one copy to the court and one copy to the plaintiff.
  5. The complaint may have the court information to mail the complaint to, but if you need help, consider checking the find a court Massachusetts website to find the court for your county.

Also, Massachusetts does provide an example response template, but sometimes these forms aren't necessarily user friendly. So, if it's helpful, please feel free to request our free form above.

Also, if you feel that you have a strong case to get the lawsuit dismissed, check out our article covering how to get a debt collection lawsuit dismissed.

Again, this task may seem daunting, so you may consider using Solosuit's software to help you design the response.

Check Out SoloSuit

3. Consider Seeking Legal Help

A legal defense counsel may be able to help if you are unsure how to respond to the debt collection lawsuit. The could also help in structuring a legal defense and counter claims. The attorney can also help you understand your legal rights and options and can assist you in the process.

4. Attend the Court Hearing

Be on the lookout for any correspondence related to a court hearting. After you file your response, the court will schedule a hearing to go through the case. You may want to attend the hearing, and bring any evidence or documentation that supports your position. In the hearing, the judge may hear both sides of the arguments to make a decision on the case. 

Next we will cover if the debt is within the statute of limitations in Massachusetts.

Alternatives to Responding to The Debt Collection Lawsuit

There are two common alternatives to responding to a debt collection lawsuit, so let’s cover both of those next.

1. Settling the Debt in Massachusetts

One common option is to settle the debt.

Settling debt is an option where Massachusetts debt relief firm or you would call the original creditor or the lawyer on the complaint and try to negotiate the balance in what’s called a stipulated judgment. This agreement can be where you pay the balance in full over a payment plan or a reduction of the balance in a lump sum or structured settlement.

As long as you meet the terms of the stipulated judgment, your account may be paid in full at the end of the agreement. If you do not, then you may face a default judgment.

2. Filing Bankruptcy

Filing bankruptcy in Massachusetts is an option that may eliminate the debt collection lawsuit altogether. The two most common bankruptcies are the  Chapter 13 bankruptcy in Massachusetts and Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Massachusetts.

If you have no disposable income after each month even before paying your debt, you may be able to qualify for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy.  A Chapter 7 bankruptcy case can eliminate unsecured debts as soon as 90 - 120 days after filing. Use our free Massachusetts Chapter 7 calculator to estimate qualification and cost to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy as this bankruptcy often requires qualification via the Massachusetts bankruptcy means test. Also, the cost to file bankruptcy in Massachusetts is $313 for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy and $338 for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, not including attorney fees.

If you can afford to pay some of your debts or need help keeping your home or car because your equity exceeds the Massachusetts bankruptcy exemptions, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy may be a way to resolve your debt. Through a court order 3 - 5 year payment plan, you can reorganize your debts into an affordable monthly payment to eliminate yoru debt. A Chapter 13 bankruptcy can also prevent foreclosure and repossession. Try our free Massachusetts Chapter 13 calculator to estimate your Chapter 13 monthly payment plan.

What Should You Do?

It’s ultimately your decision whether to respond to the Massachusetts debt collection lawsuit, but here are some questions that you can ask yourself:

  1. Is the debt yours and within the statute of limitations?
  2. Do you have other debt that can be sued on?
  3. Do you have any funds that can be used to settle the account for less than owed?

To aid in your research, we also built a free debt collection lawsuit resolution calculator that compares the cost and duration of your different potential options to resolve the debt collection lawsuit. The calculator is 100% free and does not even require an email address unless you’d like some additional assistance.