breach of contract (via sale misrepresentation)

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hypntyz

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Background: I run a small business in TN building mazda rotary engines, a unique engine different from those in 99% of other cars on the road. There are several "generations" and "versions" of engines and engine parts that vary by year and model. There is no training or certification in this niche field, most builders are self taught via race experience or personal mechanical experience, including myself. I have been building engines for the public since 2001, and have built about 250 documented engines, all with a great reputation online.

In 6/06 I sold an engine to a buyer in OK. This was an engine I had built for my own use several months prior, but did not use it. This engine was sold for use in 93-95 models. IT was a complete "longblock" with all the external accessories (alternator, intake manifolds, wiring, etc.). I had built the block (shortblock) from a mix of used and new parts as is customary with these engines. IT was advertised on an internet rotary forum which is how the deal was facilitated.

Here's the tricky part. When I built this for my own use, I used 2 parts (of the block) from a different "version" of rotary engine, while the rest were actually of this "version". The 2 parts that I substituted are basically equivalent to what would have come stock in this engine, except for 2 small sleeves which were modified for use in this engine. This forum database deletes content every few months, so I no longer have access to the original ad or how exactly the engine/sale was worded, but basically this was not disclosed as part of the sale. Honestly enough time had passed since I built it (for my own use) that I forgot all about the substitution when I sold it. Nevertheless, the substitution would have NO EFFECT on how the engine runs, performs, etc.

The engine was sold with a 1 year warranty against defects such as oil pressure, compression, smoking, etc. and no warranty on the external accessories (alternator etc.). The buyer paid a deposit on the engine via paypal, and then the balance via USPS money order. The engine was shipped to him and he paid this cost directly to the carrier upon arrival in his city.

The buyer gets the engine, and based on the lack of complaints to the contrary, I assume it runs well and produces acceptable compression, oil pressure, etc. as warrantied to. Then in 4/08 (well out of warranty) the buyer was doing some work/modifications to the engine and discovered visual cues that identified these 2 housings as being from a different "version" of engine. After short communication via email, the buyer claims that I misrepresented the engine and I should refund him the FULL PURCHASE PRICE OF THE ENGINE PLUS THE SHIPPING THAT HE PAID FROM ME TO HIM, even though he has received 2+ years of use from the engine.

He files a complaint on BBB's website and then later (last week) has his attorney (licensed in OK only) send me a letter threatening to sue in OK district court. They are asking for just under $3000, the purchase price of the engine plus shipping from me to him (which he paid to the shipping carrier, not me). They also state that if I refuse to settle, they will sue for attorney fees plus "troubleshooting, installation and removal labor" related to the engine.

There is also no guarantee that the buyer has not damaged or blown the engine and now wants a free ride because he spotted a couple of non-stock parts in the engine.

I sought advice from attorneys and law students online on a couple of other forums I am a member of, and ALL of them are telling me that this guy has zero chance and that I should ignore the threat and tell him to take a hike.

I had a consulation with a local attorney yesterday who deals in contract law in TN (where I am located). He seemed significantly more worried about this, and told me that in fact they CAN sue me in their home location of OK, and that I would lose unless I wanted to go out there and defend myself (I would not). He recommended either calling their bluff and ignoring it to see what happens, or writing a counter offer letter to replace the substituted parts in the engine and/or offer a small amount of money as a settlement.

When I went back to the other people online who had previously suggested that it was nothing to worry about, they all told me that the local attorney didn't know what he was talking about and that I should seek a second or third opinion and that there is no way I should lose any money to this.

Now I know not to trust everything that I am told by non-professionals on the internet. But I also know that 7-10 knowledgeable people might be right, especially when the local attorney stands to make money off of me by giving me skewed advice.

What do you professionals here think? Here are my main questions:

1) can I be sued in another state, versus them having to come here?
2) if they obtain a judgement against me in another state, can they come here and enforce it without a new trial here?
3) should I just ignore this and see what they do, or should I be making counter offers?

Thanks in advance for any help. There is only one other local attorney listed on findlaw that says they deal with contracts, and my time is pretty limited during business hours to try and get an appointment (most of them are booked for a week in advance anyway).
 
Here's my thought:

1) This is the best legal forum of all the places you've reasearched, LOL. :D

2) Can the purchaser sue you in his home state of OK? Maybe. All of these other people may have been giving you good advice, I don't know. But unless anyone knows more details, I don't think that there is any answer that is appropriate and it's more to know WHY the purchaser may or may not be able to sue you.

a) Do you have an agreement of sale? If you don't and it doesn't deal with this issue, than any responsible attorney should pick up on this and tell you that you MUST hire an attorney to create your purchase agreements.

b) Do you market yourself outside of TN? If you don't make many out of state efforts or sales, it will probably be more difficult for the purchaser to sue you in his home state of OK.

c) Unless the purchaser intends to pay a few hundred dollars to file a suit and pay a process server (and file appropriate paperwork), this case is going to small claims court. If it does, and I'd find that likely, then there is virtually no way that the purchaser can sue you in OK. While I don't know OK, virtually all small claims court only empower the court to hear a case if the court is in the same county where (a) the defendant resides, or (b) where the agreement took place/work performed. Neither happened in this instance.

Now, all that said... if a buyer complained to me 2 years later that he was defrauded, and I'm not quite sure that's the case here, I'd tell him that asking for the WHOLE purchase price is completely absurd. I'd probably tell him that he has no case whatsoever and he got what was listed. But in the interest of putting the matter to rest and only for the purpose of settlement and keeping your customers happy, I'd agree to a marginal sum as a token of good faith in agreement for him keeping the entire dispute confidential. If he doesn't agree, he can go to court and explain to a judge that, after driving for 2 years and a year after warranty, he somehow believes he's entitled to a whole new engine - and perhaps a new car and stereo system too. So either we can agree to something reasonable or he can waste his time and money.

That said - I am very sure I'm not hearing the whole story although you've got my take on what you've provided. The attorney whom you had a consultation is in the best position to provide you advice but I have no idea why he thought you might have some liability and you need to share that info here.
 
Thank you for your reply.

IN the letter I received from the buyers attorney, they threaten to file suit in (specific county) district court in OK. My attorney says that they will first try to file suit there. And we both agree that it is not worth my time/money to go out there and represent myself or to hire someone local out there to represent me in my absence. Thus, he feels that with a local (ok) judge, a local attorney and citizen (ok), and no one to represent my side, a judge would be inclined to grant their request for jurisdiction in OK. And afterwards I would again have the choice to go in defense or not, and I would still probably choose not to, and thus I would likely lose the case by default and they would obtain a full judgement.

My attorney says that another part of the reason he feels they could try this in OK is because the transaction happened on the internet, and the buyer never left his home county to conduct the transaction.

He told me that on the merits of the case alone, he feels I would have a good chance of winning, as far as the misrepresentation/breach of contract itself is concerned. But due to the above, he feels it will never get that far.

And he said that if they do win a judgement out in OK, and if they do come here to try and enforce it, I would no longer be able to argue the merits of the case, because the case has already been decided in OK. The discussion here would then be limited to whether or not I will pay the judgement and any actions against me if I do not, etc.

As far as the written contract/terms of purchase. An internet forum ad was made basically saying "engine for sale, built from new and used parts, for 93-95 model rx-7, external parts included" or similar. Buyer sends me a forum private message indicating he wants it, we arrange payment which was handled via paypal and USPS money order. It's not a contracted situation like building a house, it's more similar to a classified ad for a used part, money and part are exchanged and that is it. This was not custom built to order in advance, it was pre-built, advertised and sold.

I ship him the engine on a pallet freight collect, and include a written receipt for the cost of the engine which reads "93-95 engine longblock complete with accessories, warranty on shortblock only", price paid and by what means, and goes on to discuss break-in procedures for the rebuilt engine plus 1yr. warranty terms (guarantee of oil pressure, compression, coolant system integrity, no smoke, etc.). No signature was obtained since again there was never any in person meeting.

I do not "advertise" such as running banners on any websites, magazines, or newspapers. I do have a website. My attorney asked about this more than once during our consultation. He also asked if I have sold anything else in OK, to which I replied that I do not think I have. The transaction in question was facilitated on an internet rotary forum, where a classified listing was made offering the engine for sale.

IT was listed for the 93-95 platform but each and every internal part was not listed one by one, other than to say "rebuilt engine built with a mix of new and used parts as is customary for these engines". The substituted parts in question are from an earlier model of engine but are equivalent to the 93-95 versions after the modification I made.

Even so, after the initial complaint 4/08 about the part substitution, I offered for him to return it and I would change the parts out for the correct year/model versions, he declined. Unfortunately due to a computer change I only have emails of our correspondence from 2008 forward, but I do have in writing (email) his admission to this fact anyway.

I have already told him that he got what he paid for, a rebuilt rotary engine that works in 93-95 cars, but he insists on the theory that he did not get what he paid for and was defrauded based on the minor technical differences in the parts used. He has never disputed that the engine runs or makes power as it should, basically I feel that he is losing sleep at night because he knows his engine has 2 parts from a different model and this is unacceptable to him, even though it runs the same.
 
I don't disagree with your attorney. But it's probably also not worth it for their attorney to file suit too. I'm sure he explained to you that, even if they get a default judgment, they have to perfect it in TN and you'll be able to have a chance to make your case in TN, at least with regard to jurisdiction.

I disagree with your attorney to say that the buyer may sue in OK because he never left his home to order the item. I could be missing something but it's first year law school with regard to jurisdiction and this example is no different than someone calling you up on the phone and you sending him the item by mail. There is still no jurisdiction. The fact that this sale was an individual post is even more unlikely that there is jurisdiction. You may want to ask your lawyer about the "International Shoe" and "Asahi Motors" cases with regard to jurisdiction that lead me to believe that what I'm saying is probably closer to the law. But I'm always willing to learn something new. :) Good luck.
 
What he told me is that if they get a judgement in OK and come here to collect it, when I go to court, I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO ARGUE THE MERITS OF THE CASE, the only discussion would be about the previously obtained judgement and how it was going to be handled here. In other words, there would not be another trial here, only a hearing about execution of the foreign judgement.

Other law students and lawyers (and armchair lawyers) on other forums are telling me the opposite, that a foreign judgement is worthless and to try to collect there would basically be a new trial here in TN (something about personal jurisdiction?).

When he first told me "I am concerned that they may be able to sue you in OK and you would have to go there to defend this" I asked him why, told him of limited research I'd done online and asked if he was referring to the "long arm statute". He told me that that wasn't really what we were dealing with, but also said that he had no idea what OK's statutes were like, only TN's.

I guess I will try to call him again and see whether he has yet drafted up the letter we discussed (initial negotiation/settlement offer) and also ask some more about the jurisdiction issue. But we talked at length for an hour during the personal consultation so I am not sure what more he can tell me over the phone.

I have other people literally getting mad at me because I am even entertaining the possibility of offering the buyer anything or settling, or even acknowledging the threat letter. Yet this local attorney seems to be telling me that there is almost no way I can get by unscathed, unless they are just bluffing about filing suit to begin with.
 
Actually, I think both the lawyers and students are telling you the same thing but neither might be doing a great job articulating since you seem to be well versed in this stuff already. :) Here is the scoop from my knowledge. If you are fighting a foreign judgment in TN, you will have a hearing to decide only one matter - whether or not there was personal jurisdiction over your person in OK when the judgment was declared, not the merits of the case, which were already decided.

With regard to jurisdiction, I'm not sure it will matter what OK's statutes say if the Constitution trumps them all. The Constitution is the final word that determines whether there is fairness for all courts to have jurisdiction over the person and bring them into court in a foreign state. This is why there are usually similar limits to the long arm statute of different states - the limits have been adjudicated many times before your case.

I don't know what the local attorney is telling you and whether he's just being very cautious or is hoping to have you appreciate a monetary investment. I don't get it. If you just put up a single post and are not generally in the business of selling over the Internet, I just can't see how he can haul you into court with long arm jurisdiction. Maybe there is progress in an area I haven't seen but it seems to have been pretty well established that one must have "minimum contacts" with the state being sued. Second, you'll be in your home state for the hearing to perfect the judgment. Do we really think that the home court won't toss it out if they find out that one of their own was sued for a meritless case by using a foreign system and trying to then use your state to enforce? You'll be able to get your point in to the judge of what is going on when you file papers in opposition and have your hearing.

So what is the bottom line? It's a big gamble. If you lose the jurisdiction argument you've lost your case. But the alternative doesn't sound too appealing either and seems to be a waste of your time and money. I'd simply ask the attorney why the gamble to fight in your home state seems to be the wrong move given the facts.
 
Well I mean, it is not like selling this engine out of state was an isolated incident. The forum that it was sold on is a nationwide forum and I do make sales nationwide on a consistent basis...to my recollection I had never sold anything significant to a buyer in OK before, perhaps once or twice in a matter of 6-7 years at most. Most of my dealings stayed in the eastern US because the western US buyers did not want to pay the higher shipping cost.

So perhaps because I have a nationwide internet website, and do most of my dealings out of state (but not in OK), that is why he is concerned?

BTW, thanks for your continued replies and patience.
 
Maybe I've lost something since my days at law school but if you're telling me that you sell to several states but not to OK except on a rare circumstance, that is simply not enough to make you subject to jurisdiction in the state of OK. If you do business every day with New Jersey, what would that have to do with whether you have had minimum contacts with the state of Alaska and whether it would be "fair play and substantial justice" to bring you to court that far away for the sale of one small item once in several years? IMHO, any second semester law student and experienced attorney should raise this issue.

Again - I don't know all the facts and respect the good intentions and experience of some people who have spoken to you. But from what you tell me, I can't imagine why you should be afraid of going to OK. Maybe your attorney has relatives there he'd like to visit on a business trip? :D I'm sure he's got some good reasons - perhaps the fear of going for the home run or nothing in OK for a jurisdictional hearing - otherwise maybe you just need to ask him to explain them to you. Or perhaps I might be mistaken and glad to learn something new!
 
He explained the reasoning behind not wanting to go as follows:

the suit would be for 3 grand (maybe a bit more if they try to get removal labor costs as well) and a short-notice plane ticket there and back will probably be 500 or more, plus a room for the night while out there, so even if I just go myself without representation I'd easily have 6-700 dollars in just going to the jurisdiction hearing. He said he would not consider doing this for less than 1000 if I were to ask him. So between 700 and 1000, plus my possible lost time in dealing with it, and there is no guarantee that we would win the hearing anyway.

Then based on the outcome of the hearing, rinse and repeat for the trial where the merits of the case are discussed. And again there is no guarantee of winning that.

HE said basically that it is not worthwhile to try and go out there to defend any segment of it. He said that with small claims like this it is hard to know what to do...you certainly dont want to lose 3 or 4 grand, but you dont want to tie up one or 2 grand in trying to fight it either. He said, "you know, if this were a suit for 10 grand, it would be clear what to do, but for this amount, it is really not worth bothering to go out there".

He also said he is not licensed to practice in OK nor is he well versed in their statutes. Maybe that is another reason he doesnt want any part of going out there?
 
I agree with the attorney about the cost and the difficulty in choosing one situation or another. But given the totality of the circumstances, I think it's a no brainer to put the onus on them to (a) jump the jurisdiction hurdle, and (b) to explain to a judge why he should give this guy back his money years after the transaction. Given your minimal contacts with their state, I can't imagine your home state not knocking that decision out of the park. I'd say the odds are well in your favor from what you tell me and I'd choose that option if it were myself.

Not being licensed to practice nor being well versed in their statutes is just one reason the attorney wouldn't want to go. Another is being mugged in a small state court by a bunch of locals. We aren't talking about Los Angeles or NY City. We're talking about some small court in the south/midwest. Seen it before and it happens.
 
hypntyz said:
Well I mean, it is not like selling this engine out of state was an isolated incident. The forum that it was sold on is a nationwide forum and I do make sales nationwide on a consistent basis...to my recollection I had never sold anything significant to a buyer in OK before, perhaps once or twice in a matter of 6-7 years at most. Most of my dealings stayed in the eastern US because the western US buyers did not want to pay the higher shipping cost.

So perhaps because I have a nationwide internet website, and do most of my dealings out of state (but not in OK), that is why he is concerned?
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I have a worldwide web site - come to think of it, I happen to have a site on the world wide web. That doesn't mean it's fair to call me into court in Australia for a $200 item I may have sold to one person there. The landmark cases (International Shoe, Asahi Motors) state something that seems pretty logical, as I stated in my example. Each state is like a mini-country. Just because you live in Oregon and sell all your merchandise there and in Arizona and California and have an ability to sell elsewhere (as does everyone) doesn't mean it's fair to haul you into court in Florida for one item that you may have shipped there. The court's power should only extend over those who have at least a "minimum contact" with the state which has some substance. If you engage in targeted market towards people in Florida but only 1 or 2 people buy from you, that's a minimum contact because you are invading the state's boundaries by marketing directly to them so that they can buy from you. But if you do general marketing and someone calls you to ship an item to them, and you don't generally do business there, it wouldn't seem fair to haul you into court in Florida. The idea of "invasion of the state boundaries" also implies that you are benefitting from the protections, police and other efforts made by the state by doing business within the state. That's the notion of "you came here, it's safe because we made it so and thus if you have a dispute here, this is where it's reasonable for you to settle it."

I had a case a few years ago with a mail order company in New York. We had to do the opposite, show that they marketed to people in Michigan because the plaintiff sued them in Michigan for not refunding money for a purchase made in New York. In that instance, our client received direct marketing materials sent to him from the company several times.

Ask the attorney and post the reply here. I would really be interested in hearing his take but, just because you put up a site on the web, doesn't mean you have minimum contacts with every state in the country let alone every country on the planet.
 
Sorry to bump an old thread guys, but I thought it might be better than creating a whole new one since all the back info is here.

A couple months ago when this was first an issue, my attorney replied to the threat letter I'd received. It basically said that asking for the entire cost was ludicrous, we did not believe they had jurisdiction over me, and we were ready to defend it in TN if they wanted to come.

Then last week I got served with notice of suit in OK district court, this time for about $6000 (they have apparently added some remove/install fees on top of the engine costs themselves). I went back to my attorney who was surprised that they are following through. The court date in OK is set for 2-17, and I was served with this just a few days ago so I dont have much time to figure out what to do.

One quick thing to note. I feel, and my attorney agrees, that this was improperly served on me. My wife came home one day to a note on our door with the name and phone number of a cop. It said they were trying to reach __________ (name of plaintiff there) for process server notice, they had been unable to contact us, and failure to call the officer listed would result in a misdemeanor charge for interfering with an officer. They had incorrectly written the plaintiff's name on this notice rather than mine.

So my wife calls the cop and tells him there is no such person here, and he comes back to our house, tells her it is simply a clerk error and it is for me, and hands her a single document, which is the court filing from OK. I was not home. She was not asked to sign anything.

My attorney says that I could challenge this case on that basis alone or in addition to the actual merits of the case, but again I'd have to be represented in OK for that to happen.

He now feels that it is best for me to find an OK local attorney to represent me remotely, rather than taking the chance on letting them get a default judgement. He says that if that were to happen they could come to TN and file the judgement as-is. He does not believe that I could challenge jurisdiction once it comes here, even though multiple other sources say that I should.

IT is about a 12 hour drive out there, and I asked my attorney if I should just physically go out there. He told me not to, because he feels that if I show up out there in person, I would automatically subject myself to their jurisdiction since I am now standing in front of them. Other sources say that this is not necessarily so.

There is only one other attorney in my town that findlaw.com says deals with contract law, and they are about 1.5-2 weeks out on appointments it seems, so I cannot really seek a second opinion in-person. Plus his consultation is not free either (I have already paid fees to the first local attorney twice now for his consultation and letter writing services).

I went back on findlaw.com and checked in Tulsa, OK for attorneys practicing contract law and found only 3 that offer free consultation; one of which is the other guy's attorney. I emailed the other 2 and have gotten no response.

Any more advice?
 
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I'd go with your attorney's advice. Don't go there personally. I don't know what the rules of attornment are in that jurisdiction, but you don't want to find out the hard way. Get a local lawyer there to challenge service.

IMO, you should also defend the claim in OK rather than allowing the plaintiff to obtain default judgment and then challenging it in TN. I say this from a Canadian perspective - our courts tend to be rather tolerant of foreign plaintiffs seeking to enforce their foreign judgments here. If your lawyer suggests your court is similarly tolerant, fight it in OK.
 
UPDATE:

I found a local OK attorney to represent my interest remotely through the jurisdiction/venue hearings. Both my local TN attorney as well as the OK attorney felt that OK did not have jurisdiction. Because I never advertised there. The buyer picked up the phone and called me to complete the purchase, not the other way around. He mailed payment to me in TN to complete purchase. The buyer contracted the shipping carrier to bring the engine from TN to OK, and he paid them directly, so the point of sale was TN and not OK.

But the local OK judge did not agree, and found that OK has jurisdiction since the engine was "delivered" in OK. My attorney was flabbergasted and said it is just one of those off-the-wall decisions that judges make from time to time. He also says the judge is being extremely lenient toward the plaintiff because it is small claims court and he has no attorney, while I do. He granted the plaintiff TWO continuances to attempt to gather more evidence and to explore obtaining an attorney (he did not), when HE was the one who brought the case to begin with! He let the plaintiff bring in new email evidence at the last minute and even admitted on record that it went against procedure but he was going to allow it anyway. My attorney has no explanation for why this judge is being so lenient.

At this point it looks like I need to head out to OK and defend this. Should I retain my OK attorney to go with me? It seems to me that since this judge is being so lenient, perhaps all I need to do is show up and argue my side of things in a reasonable manner, since they do not seem to stand on ceremony in this particular court.

Let's say I go out there and lose, and the plaintiff gets the judgement against me. What would be his procedure for trying to collect on that judgement? What records or info on me can he obtain? Business/personal bank financial info? Tax records? Assets (vehicles)? How far can he go to try and enforce this judgement?

Also, again lets say he wins the judgement. What "fees and expenses" can he add to the judgement? From what I understand, he may incur significant additional expenses in trying to collect this judgement in TN. Will those add into the judgement as well? He should have no attorney fees and no travel expenses to tack on.

Thanks in advance, as always.
 
BTW, to add a couple things I forgot:

both attorneys still HIGHLY recommend against me letting OK get a default judgement, because they feel that TN would be inclined to honor that foreign judgement. Unless we could show a MAJOR operational error on the part of the court, which they feel we could not. They say that it would be different if it came to TN and I could tell my local court that I didn't know about the proceedings out there, maybe I couldn't be notified, maybe I was sick in the hospital or something and couldn't fight the OK case. But obviously that is not the case and it is obvious I knew about it and tried to fight it.

So they both feel that TN would honor the OK decision and enforce the judgement.

THe plaintiff filed suit for just under $6000 total. Right at $3000 of that was for the engine and the shipping from TN to OK (that he paid directly to the shipping carrier). The other ~$3k, from what I understand, is for "installation, troubleshooting, removal" of the engine once he became dissatisfied with it. Here is the kicker. The engine was shipped to the plaintiff's brother's garage. Whether this is a legitimate business or just a garage at a residence I don't know. But he apparently got his brother to write a "receipt" for these 'services" that add up to ~$3k.
 
Well, you've got your attorneys saying don't let him get default judgment. That's sound advice. I'd take it. Your further questions were:

Let's say I go out there and lose, and the plaintiff gets the judgement against me. What would be his procedure for trying to collect on that judgement? What records or info on me can he obtain? Business/personal bank financial info? Tax records? Assets (vehicles)? How far can he go to try and enforce this judgement?

Also, again lets say he wins the judgement. What "fees and expenses" can he add to the judgement? From what I understand, he may incur significant additional expenses in trying to collect this judgement in TN. Will those add into the judgement as well? He should have no attorney fees and no travel expenses to tack on.
Click to expand...

The procedure for collecting varies by state. And this is interjurisdictional, which complicates it a bit. I would GUESS he could avail himself of whatever OK procedures are available. No-one here is an expert on OK civil procedure; I'd ask your OK lawyer. I'd be surprised if OK didn't have some form of examination in aid of execution that would require you to answer questions under oath about your assets. Bank info, probably. Tax returns are, IMHO, less likely.

Small claims courts virtually never award court costs to the successful party. But he is probably entitled to the costs of collecting the judgment if he wins. What those might be is anyone's guess. (How hard do you want to make it for him to collect?)
 
Your attorney is right. If you show up, unless you know what you're doing you may subject yourself to the court's jurisdiction where you will have to fight there. This is always a tough decision - do I fight on the merits in the away team's court and wait for them to come to my stadium to execute (and then I fight that I didn't have my day in court in an invalid jurisdiction)? Or do I just nip it in the bud and go for it, fighting on the merits in the away team's court?

There are many services where you can get referrals (including here) and if you open a up a support ticket I am sure we can help. Another potential way is to call the OK state bar and have them make a recommendation.
 
thelawprofessor said:
Your attorney is right. If you show up, unless you know what you're doing you may subject yourself to the court's jurisdiction where you will have to fight there. This is always a tough decision - do I fight on the merits in the away team's court and wait for them to come to my stadium to execute (and then I fight that I didn't have my day in court in an invalid jurisdiction)? Or do I just nip it in the bud and go for it, fighting on the merits in the away team's court?

There are many services where you can get referrals (including here) and if you open a up a support ticket I am sure we can help. Another potential way is to call the OK state bar and have them make a recommendation.
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The remote attorney in OK recommended highly against letting them get the default judgement against me because he felt it would be difficult to fight it in TN after it had been awarded in OK. HE says that since I cannot show that I did not know about it (in that I was served), and I cannot show that I did not try to fight it (in that I hired him to make an appearance for me), TN is likely to say "you knew about this and you even tried to fight it, the ruling was made in good faith by the OK court system and we will honor their decision".

So when we were shot down on jurisdiction and OK said they would hear the case, my attorney said I needed to come out there and be a part of the hearing, so I did.
 
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