Do RP Members realize that active duty military owning their own business can circumvent paying court ordered judgements?

2018-08-03T02:09:17-04:00

PLEASE don't do this. I filed a civil action against a landscaper to recover $1400. He presented me through my filing agency a document that advised if the defendant was active duty and a judgement was issued against him, he did not have to pay the judgement and it would not be accessed against his credit history. This is how I found out that public support for veteran-owned and active-duty owned businesses is low to nonexistent.
COL Mikel J. Burroughs , LTC Stephen F. , PO1 William "Chip" Nagel , Cynthia Croft , SP5 Mark Kuzinski , Capt Dwayne Conyers , Lt Col Charlie Brown , SGT Gregory Lawritson

Response by Maj John Bell made Aug 3 at 2018 2:40 AM

2018-08-03T02:40:18-04:00

I am not an attorney, but I'm pretty sure the document he presented is not correct. Is it a court document, or an argument presented by his represntation? The relief comes from the Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act (SCRA) it stops the litigation and puts it on hold.

"[The defendant] must provide to the court a signed statement by the service member's commanding officer specifying that the member is on active duty and stating that the duty will materially affect his or her ability to defend against the law suit for a specified period of time, during which leave is not available. The SCRA entitles the service member to an automatic mandatory 90-day stay of proceedings. After that, an extended, discretionary stay may be allowed if a commanding officer's statement indicates that continued military duty prevents the member's ability to defend. At that point the court must either allow the extended stay of the law suit, or else appoint counsel to protect the service person's rights.

The SCRA offers no relief once a judgment has been reached. As I read this, the service member is not covered if a judgment has been issued and he needs to pay up. Failure to make good faith efforts to pay up may and should lead to contempt of court actions.

https://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/how-to-stop-a-civil-law-suit-when-someone-is-on-active-military-duty

How To Stop A Civil Law Suit When Someone Is On Active Military Duty

Where a civil law suit comes up, suit papers are filed, or a pending case requires attention, the fact that one of the parties is serving the country should not be used against them in court. There is protection for folks who are in the service, deployed on official duty. It's ...

Response by SGM Bill Frazer made Aug 3 at 2018 12:01 PM

2018-08-03T12:01:36-04:00

That should vary from state to state, never heard of it before. Need to see if it is a smoke screen