Respond and avoid a default judgment — filing-ready in minutes
1. Your State
2. Your Info
3. Case Details
4. Your Defenses
Where is your case filed?
We'll build your Answer using your state's specific court format.
Your Information
This is you, the Defendant being sued.
Exactly as it appears in the lawsuit
Case & Plaintiff Details
Information about the lawsuit and who is suing you.
The county listed on your court papers (parish in Louisiana, borough in Alaska)
Debt buyers (LVNV, Midland, Portfolio Recovery) bought the account.
The day you received the lawsuit papers. Used only to estimate your deadline.
Found on your court papers. Leave blank if unknown.
Check your court's rules for accepted service methods. U.S. Mail is most common.
Your Affirmative Defenses
Check the defenses that fit your situation. Not sure which apply? The most common in credit-card cases are pre-checked to consider. You decide what is true for you.
How this works
Your Answer denies the claims and demands proof. Each defense you check is added as a numbered paragraph. Only check what you believe is true for your situation.
Building your state-specific Answer...
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Your Answer is Ready!
Your Answer and Affirmative Defenses has downloaded as a PDF.
📅 Put your date on your calendar
Copy the date printed on your court papers. In most county and circuit court cases that is the deadline to respond on your summons. If your papers say Small Claims or Notice to Appear, use the court date and time printed there instead. We do not calculate this date for you.
The calendar file is made on your device and is not sent to us. The Google button opens Google Calendar with only the title and date filled in. Neither one includes your name or case number.
Do you have an arbitration clause in your card agreement?
If so, you may be able to force this case out of court entirely, where the company pays most of the fees. Your Answer already reserves that right. Use our free
Motion to Compel Arbitration tool next.
WHAT'S IN YOUR PDF:
The Answer — this is what you file with the court and serve on the plaintiff.
An Instructions page — for you only. Do NOT file this page; remove it before filing.
BEFORE YOU FILE:
File before your deadline. Missing it can cause a default judgment against you.
Any highlighted yellow field still needs your review — do not file with one left unresolved.
Check whether your court requires you to respond to each numbered paragraph of the Complaint (some do). The Instructions page explains this.
Remove the Instructions page before filing.
Make copies (one for the court, one for the plaintiff's attorney, one for yourself).
Keep proof that you served the plaintiff.
What happens after you file? Service, the deadline that applies to your case type, and the ninety days that follow (discovery, summary judgment, the small claims pretrial) are covered in the Response Kit, part of the Core package. The Answer builder stays free either way. Compare the packages →
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