i received a summons under girlfriends name as the defendant and john doe assume me

[Chrisds]

Hi my name is Chris,

I received a summons for a civil case, the defendant on it is my girl friend and John Doe which is me I think.
It for an incident that happen 2 year ago in Arizona, we live in calif.


My girl friend and I were camping and while fishing a group of about 5 or 6 showed up, one of them started fishing and he and my girlfriend started arguing about a fishing spot, another man in the group fired a gun and someone in the group said to my girl friend "say something now" we were terrified, than they drove away.
Girlfriend calls 911 and then cops stops them at a gas station, a cop came to our campsite to pickup my girlfriend to ID them. Cops found 2 guns with them. Girl friend an I wrote a statement on what happened.
Anyway now the person who shot the gun is bringing girlfriend and I to court for damages, due to his case was dismissed. Can I be liable? I did not say a word the whole time, I did not make the 911 call and I did not leave camp site to ID them, but I did wrote a statement.
Also do i need a attorney to answer summons, how will all this work?
My girlfreind dont care about it, because she have a fix SSI income and no money for an attorney.
Can a attorney if i get one help her to or do i have to pay double?

thanks

 

[army judge]

Hi my name is Chris,

I received a summons for a civil case, the defendant on it is my girl friend and John Doe which is me I think.
It for an incident that happen 2 year ago in Arizona, we live in calif.


My girl friend and I were camping and while fishing a group of about 5 or 6 showed up, one of them started fishing and he and my girlfriend started arguing about a fishing spot, another man in the group fired a gun and someone in the group said to my girl friend "say something now" we were terrified, than they drove away.
Girlfriend calls 911 and then cops stops them at a gas station, a cop came to our campsite to pickup my girlfriend to ID them. Cops found 2 guns with them. Girl friend an I wrote a statement on what happened.
Anyway now the person who shot the gun is bringing girlfriend and I to court for damages, due to his case was dismissed. Can I be liable? I did not say a word the whole time, I did not make the 911 call and I did not leave camp site to ID them, but I did wrote a statement.
Also do i need a attorney to answer summons, how will all this work?
My girlfreind dont care about it, because she have a fix SSI income and no money for an attorney.
Can a attorney if i get one help her to or do i have to pay double?

thanks

First of all, if you live in Cali, its all but impossible for you to be sued in Arizona.

Were you served with a court summons (service is normally by a peace officer or process server) and is done in person.

An Arizona court doesn't have jurisdiction over a Cali citizen, unless you submit to the court and service.

If you're a "John Doe" defendant, you're all but free of this anyway, unless you blab and admit you're THAT "John Doe".

Bottom line, the plaintiff doesn't know who you are.

Even if you agreed to service and jurisdiction (stupid in my view), you'd probably prevail anyway, because the police arrested the idiot.

From what you say, you simply called (or someone called) the cops because a gun was brandished and people felt threatened.

How is the document you received "entitled"?

Is it under court seal (a raised marking, such as what you've seen on marriage certificates or birth certificates)?

I suggest you take the document to a local attorney.

Most attorneys will meet with you initially for free to discuss a bit about your issue.

Depending on what the attorney advises, that is how you should proceed.

You might want to see 2 or 3 local attorneys to make sure you're getting a proper rendition of the events ahead.

 

[Chrisds]

Thanks for your response, the summons dont have a raised seal, just a stamped from the clerk of superior court Yuma Az. and was served by a man in person not a peace officer.
i am not sure of the title, but it say COMPLAINT
Also the plaintiff lives in Calif.
In the Factual Matters which is the plaintiffs account of what happened, my name is mentioned, but not mentioned as a defendant just Girlfriends name, john does, jane does,partnerships and corporations.

I will take your advice and see a local Attorney.

Thanks

 

[army judge]

Thanks for your response, the summons dont have a raised seal, just a stamped from the clerk of superior court Yuma Az. and was served by a man in person not a peace officer.
i am not sure of the title, but it say COMPLAINT
Also the plaintiff lives in Calif.
In the Factual Matters which is the plaintiffs account of what happened, my name is mentioned, but not mentioned as a defendant just Girlfriends name, john does, jane does,partnerships and corporations.

I will take your advice and see a local Attorney.

Thanks

Very odd, the plaintiff, too, lives in Cali.

Yes, by all means, take all that stuff and see a couple local attorneys.

 

[fredrikklaw]

Causes of Action? Damages?

CHRISDS:

I am curious; what exactly are Plaintiff's causes of action, and what are his damages? This guy is a joke and if he has retained counsel for this lawsuit, then he (counsel) should be brought before Arizona Bar for filing a frivolous and unmeritorious action. Also, does the complaint state on the front page that it is a VERIFIED COMPLAINT?

But regardless of the causes of action and damages prayed for, do not start thinking about mortgaging the house to pay for defense of this action as it is a nonsense suit and it should be treated with the contempt it deserves.

To begin with, you are not John Doe and don't go offering yourself as the unknown defendant because the Plaintiff knows exactly who you are as evident by naming you in the narrative, but has decided not to name you as co-defendant for what I think is a devious reason; he may be saving you for another lawsuit should he not get any joy out of this one, which he won't. So instead of offering yourself as the John Doe, force Plaintiff into a Joinder of Defendants by way of a motion bearing the same in title. This is in the unlikely event that this case should somehow proceed further than a swift dismissal even before an answer is filed by way of Provisional Remedies.

Provisional Remedies allow a defendant to make a Special Appearance before filing an answer in order to dismiss the case, which you should consider taking advantage of, one of which is a motion to dismiss for Lack of Personal Jurisdiction. Because in order to sue an out of state defendant in the plaintiff's state court (superior court), Plaintiff must plead that the wrongful acts complained of invoke the power of the state's Long Arm Statutes, AND, the showing of Sufficient Minimum contact with the forum state to justify personal jurisdiction over Defendant and due process.

Long Arm statutes and Due Process discussions are lengthy ones, but Suffice it to say that a camping trip does not satisfy the minimum and sufficient contacts statues of any state and does not confer on Arizona Courts jurisdiction over your persons. So a motion to dismiss on such ground would be the proper kick in the teeth the plaintiff needs.

That leaves the Plaintiff with the only other option in order to pursue his laughable claims, and that is to commence action in Federal Court which would have been a viable alternative to state court had the Plaintiff not been such a doofus. Because to sue in Federal Court, parties have to be citizens of different states, not the same state and the minimum amount in controversy must be at least $75,000.

So you can see that this too is a no-go for the Plaintiff. So file a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction and be done with it!

fredrikklaw

 

[Chrisds]

Thanks fredikklaw, very good information.

I will call a couple of Attorneys tomorrow. or do I need a Arizona Attorney to file a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction?

No on VERIFIED COMPLAINT, it just say COMPLAINT.

Plaintiff is looking for General damage, Punitive damage, and cost of litigation and attorneys fees

Thanks,