Bridgeport, CA Bankruptcy Law Firms & Lawyers

A fine is a criminal judgment so it is not a civil judgment. You must be talking about a charge that may be related to a criminal case but not part of the sentence (not really a fine). For example, a cost that you must pay the court or a victim but it is not as part of the punishment for the crime. If not part of the sentence then it should be dischargeable in bankruptcy. Fines and restitution as a condition of probation are not dischargeable.

You need to go to the Court where the judgment was issued and get a copy of the summons. This will tell you how they claim it was served. I am not sure what state you are in but different processes are allowed in each state. In the situation you mentioned, moving around, it is common to be served at the last know address that the creditor had for you at the time. If you lived with a relative or a girlfriend who accepted service for you and forgot to tell you, then service is unfortunately, most likely ok. There are other methods of service which are allowed depending on where you are located. Further, even if you prove that service was defective, you need to show you had a defense to the lawsuit. If you owed the money or otherwise don't have a defense, then you wouldn't be able to upset the judgment. So first, you have to show you were not properly served, and second, you need to show you had a defense which could have beaten the judgment.

Yes it is possible. We do have to list the household income on the petition in order to qualify for the Means test. One spouse filing happens all the time.