What should I do if I received a civil court summons today over injuries someone I don’t know received in a traffic accident 2 years ago but I wasn’t involved in any accident?
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What should I do if I received a civil court summons today over injuries someone I don’t know received in a traffic accident 2 years ago but I wasn’t involved in any accident?
I really have no idea what this is about. I am really confused and don’t know what I need to
do. How could this happen? Shouldn’t this accident be on my driving record?
Asked on May 7, 2016 under Accident Law, Tennessee
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Your driving record and a civil suit against you have nothing to do with each other: you could get points on your license or fines without beng sued, and vice versa. What you should do is if the amount is greater than the limit for small claims in your state, hire an attorney to defend you; if the amount is less than the small claims limit, it's probably not economically worthwhile hiring a lawyer (you could spend as much or more on the lawyer as you are being sued for). In this latter case, you would defend yourself in court; the first step is to file an answer to the summons and complaint, so you do not default (lose automatically). The answer, which needs to be filed in court and also served on (sent to) the person suing you or their attorney, should deny anything which you do not believe happened or remember happening. You can get instructions for filing an answer from your court.
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