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A motion to vacate a judgment asks the court to essentially set aside the judgment. It is different from an appeal, in that an appeal asserts that the trial court either applied the wrong law or applied the correct law incorrectly.
A motion to vacate a judgment can be based upon a number of grounds. However, it is never based upon mere unhappiness with the outcome of the case. One of the primary bases for such a motion is that service of process was not lawfully achieved, and therefore, the court rendering the judgment never had personal jurisdiction over the defendant to render the judgment (but there are others). A court must have both personal and subject matter jurisdiction to render a judgment. Personal jurisdiction is achieved by lawful service of the summons and complaint, and subject matter jurisdiction contemplates that the lawsuit was filed in the proper court.
A motion to vacate is a written request to the court to set aside the judgment for a valid reason. The original of the judgment gets filed with the Clerk of the court that rendered the judgment, and a copy gets mailed or delivered to either the Plaintiff (if not represented) or his/her attorney. The motion must set forth that a copy was provided to the other party/attorney. Typically, the movant then contacts the court for a hearing date on which the merits of the motion are argued, and either the court of the movant ensures that all parties get written notice of the date and time of the hearing.
The movant has the burden of proving the correctness of facts set forth in the motion and his/her entitlement to have the judgment vacated. There is usually a presumption of correctness of the judgment (that is, that it was entered properly), so proof is more than "he said/she said". Further, the party seeking to have the judgment vacated must proceed diligently/quickly. At least if the motion is based upon reasons other than lack of personal jurisdiction (which renders the judgment void), the longer that one waits to request the relief, the less likely he/she is to get it.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Wiki User
∙ 15y agoAny time AFTER the ruling, or the sentence, has been pronounced.
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How many days after a judgment of revoking guardianship do i have to file for a motion to vacate?
Massachusetts law on time frame to file a motion to vacate
How many daysto file Motion To Vacate Default Judgment?
10 DAYS
How do you remove a judgment from your credit report that is not valid?
File a motion to vacate based on that fact. After the judgment is entered there is a SOL for filing that motion.
How do you remove a Default judgment?
You have to get a copy of the case file and go over it and file a Motion to vacate judgment based on, error in service or whatever your defense is. Check your states laws because there is a SOL on you being able to file this motion.
Can a unsatisfied judgement be taken off of your credit report?
if you file a motion to vacate dismiss the judgment and it is granted, or it has run its course for SOL for reporting
Does Motion to vacate judgment means the entire judgment can't be appeal or just the vacated issue?
Unless the judgment is worded to specificallyexclude certain privisions and/or specifically include certain others, just a general motion to vacate refers to the ENTIRE judgment.
How do you contest a judgment against you?
File a Motion To Vacate in the court where the judgment was entered against the defendant. Contact the office of the clerk of the court of jurisdiction for information on the procedures and the forms required for filing.
How do you contest a fraudulent judgment against you?
File a Motion To Vacate in the court where the judgment was entered against the defendant. Contact the office of the clerk of the court of jurisdiction for information on the procedures and the forms required for filing.
How does one go about trying to pay off a small claims court debt in the state of California if the judgment is a number of years old?
You should first try to contact the plaintiff. Contact the court to get the plaintiffs' current information, including if they have assigned the judgment to a 3rd party. If you cannot contact the plaintiffs using the latest info on file at the court, you will need to file a motion to vacate the judgment. See an attorney for the motion to vacate--look in the phonebook for one who gives "free consultations."
How do you remove a wrongful judgment?
Counter-sue. * File a Motion to Vacate in the court where the judgment was entered. If the petitioner is not throughly versed in the laws of the state and the procedures of filing it would be in their best interest to retain an attorney or at least legal advice on the validity of the motion and the implementation thereof.
What do you do if you were not served and now have a default judgment?
If you were not served and now have a default judgement, you can ask the court to vacate the default judgement. You have 180 days from the discovery of the judgement to file this motion.?æ
How do I get a judgment vacated when I wasn't personally served?
File a motion to vacate and cite the lack of proper service. Be sure to check the statutes and show that none of the options for legal service were effected.
