Debtor Rights
The Statute of Limitations is one of your main allies as a debtor under the debt collection laws. Once your debt has gone past the Statue of Limitations your creditor can cannot sue or bring a lawsuit against you and make it stick.
Keep in mind you still can be brought to court but it will automatically be dismissed if you use an expired statute in your defense.
The statute requires that the creditor files legal action against you within a certain period of time. Once that time is past they lose that right. The time limit varies based on the state.
One catch is, if you pay back your creditor even a cent during the time period of the statute, the time period starts over from that date. To protect yourself and ensure fair debt collection practice, you need to know your rights.
Some other methods debt collection services use include: