It's been a long day. You're at home trying to relax when the door bell rings. Upon opening the door, a stranger hands you a packet of papers. The word "SUMMONS" jumps off the top page as the stranger’s voice declares “You’ve been served.”
This same process of being served a summons could happen on the job (which is a lot more embarrassing). Keep in mind that you do not have to be personally served but the lawsuit can be left at your home. Regardless of how you receive the lawsuit you must take action.
You are being sued! Sometimes it is expected, sometimes not, but it always leaves people with a sinking feeling when it happens. What do you do? One thing is certain - You must respond! Of all the things you can do, the absolute worst response is no response. Do not ignore the summons. If you do not respond the person suing you will get whatever they have asked for in their lawsuit because the Court will only hear his or her story.
The first step is to read the summons. Depending on the type of lawsuit, the summons will either tell you a court date to appear or tell you that you must respond within a certain time. Again, failure to do either will result in a default judgment being taken against you.
The second step is to either appear in