How do I go about suing my cousin for an unpaid phone bill and a early termination fee?
I co signed for my cousin, so he could get a cell phone. He didn’t have the credit, so I told him that I would co signed for him as long as he paid his bills. My cousin got in an argument with my step dad and moved back in Arkansas. He then stopped paying the bill. I also have text messages from him saying that he sent it in, but when I called Verzion, they said they never received payment. His name also appears with mine on the contract. I am going to pay Verzion the 0 dollars I owe them. After I do that can I sue my cousin for refurbishment of what I paid. How would I go about taking him to small claims court if he lives in a different state. Is their a cheap attorney I can get, or one that takes like 1/3 only if they order medicine online win the case.
Since it would be a suit between people of two different states you’d need to file in federal court covering the area HE lives in since you’re the one suing. By the time you add the lawyers fees, court fees, and your time off just to travel to court it’s going to be a no-win situation for you. For that reason I’d recommend that you take the loss and learn from your mistake.
yes sue him, you could represent your self, you got the proof on your cell phone then you got the case.
The only problem is the defence would be like "you dont know he was the one who sent the text" but it should be easy to win.
1)Have all supporting documents. Phone bill, phone numbers. Usually it doesn’t take much. Yeah, go to your local court and ask what to do. Then they’ll set a court date, usually if he doesn’t show up you win, and they might garnish his wages. No lawyer necessary. They cost too much for just 3-4 hundred dollar lawsuit.
For the relatively small amount involved and the associated difficulty of being in two different States, you won’t find an attorney willing to give you assistance.
The day you co-signed the agreement put the responsibility squarely on your shoulders if he defaulted. So the first and most important thing to do is to revoke, by notice, your ongoing cosignment by sending a registered letter to Verizon to terminate the service before it gets worse.
For the present, the difficulty in gaining reimbursement through a small claims court action is too impractical.
Make sure you have all the documentation to support your claim then you file a lawsuit with small claims court.
You co-signed the agreement, so you will get stuck with the fees.
If this is your cousin, try talking to another family member to help you resolve this. Filing lawsuits against family members makes little sense to me. Also, you will pay more in attorney fees than the $250 he owes you.
You have two choices.Pay the bill yourself and don’t ever sign for anyone or lend money to antone,or small claims court.In any case you will still be a loser.I’d probably just chalk it up