Sued for attorney fees for a citizens complaint?

[Rossro]

I was involved in a minor motor vehicle accident in NJ on Jan 2 2012. I was the only driver issued a ticket by the officers... for not having my drivers license on me. I DO and DID have a vailid DL at the time, it was just not on my person at the time. I attempted to have the judge "dismiss"(?) the ticket explaining how i was the victim of a MVA and not at fault and explaining why my DL was not in my wallet. Unfortunatly the judge still had me pay the fines.
Since the entire accident was due to the other driver attempting to pass me on the right on a one lane road in the middle of an intersection AND she struck my vehicle in the passanger side door (2 door car - hit in the center of door) and again hit my back bumper when I attempted to stop I felt I needed to sign complaints against her for insurance purposes.
-- Ive heard of MVA before where insurance will argue 50/50 fault bc no tickets --
I waited until the end of my DL ticket ordeal because I felt if the judge was kind enough to drop my ticket then I will let bygone be bygones - this was around 30 days after the accident.
Once the other driver recieved my tickets (i signed 4, careless driving, failure to yield, failur to obey marked lanes and passing on the right) she then procedded to sign the same tickets against me, and two additional which were total fabrication(harrasment and using my cell phone)
On the advice of an attorny, I agreed in court to dismiss my tickets if she would do the same, she decided to hire an attorney to represent her in court. After all the tickets were dropped she made mention to the judge she was suing me for her attorny fees.... well the time has come and i recieved letter in the mail she is taking me to court for this.

To me it seems cut and dry, she is harrassing me and making a mockery of the judicial system. OH, I should mention that after looking up the NJ overlay for the police report, it indicates neither driver were using phones, and that she failed to yield ROW. I really regret dismissing the original charges because she should not be allowed to intimidate her way out of this.

What are my options?

 

[mightymoose]

Your citation was not for a moving violation and never would have been a factor for insurance.
You are right, you should not have dismissed your initial case and you might not be able to bring it up again.
Since you already consulted an attorney earlier in this process you should do so again. Don't worry much though. If she wanted attorney fees she should have asked for it when she agreed to dismiss.

 

[Rossro]

Mightmoose

Thank you for your reply.
I do not think I can bring up the previous tickets again, they were dismissed with prejudice I believe - to my understanding we were both dropping them and agreeing not to resign the complaints.
I am not sure if this means I cannot sign a different complaint stemming from the same incident, I mention this because as she signed a harasment ticket against me, I never signed one against her, and she did harass me. She even had her oldest son come to the scene, luckily the Police had arrived by that time because she was threatening how he would snap me like a twig.
I never pursued charges because a) i felt it would only complicate matters and b) i really thought once we dropped the tickets we were done.
I also feel her trying to sue me for her attorney fees is harassing. Not sure if that would hold any ground, I have already used 4 days off from work... who knows how many more to get through the rest of this now.

Again Mightymoose I thank you for your reply, and anyone else who chimes in, it is much appreciated as I am 29 years old, working full time, trying to go back to school for an associates degree AND hoping to be engaged soon - I really cant afford an attorny or to pay for someone elses (although I will do what I need to in order to defend my virtue... I was not at fault in this MVA!!!!)
TY
RR

 

[Latigo]

sued for attorney fees

Take a deep breath and calm down. You are fretting over nothing so ignore this babbling looney toon.

Given what you have described the only conceivable cause of action she could conjure up - other than some phony tort/negligence claim arising out of the collision, for which she would not be entitled to attorney fees even should she prevail - would be one for malicious prosecution.

By this I'm referring to what you describe as the tickets you caused to instituted against her for "for careless driving, failure to yield, failure to obey marked lanes and passing on the right". Which she could possible plead as grounds for the tort action of malicious prosecution.

But she'd hit a solid wall trying to prove the one essential ingredient necessary to sustain such a claim. And that is the absence of probable cause on your part to have initiated those traffic citations.

If I haven't made that clear, please tell me.

 

[Rossro]

Latigo (Let it go?)

Thank you for your response. As it turns out you are correct - in that she is loony and has no case. The judge listened to her for maybe 30 seconds and dismissed it without asking me a single question.
The best part was we had to try and settle in the presence of a mediator - she really thought I would have to pay - she had copies of the tickets and pictures of the car and was all to eager to show them to the mediator. He wasn't interested as his job was not to enter a judgement rather try to get us to settle. Of course my standpoint was all or nothing which I am glad because had I chosen to settle I may have had to pay and the judge wouldn't have dismissed the case (not sure how that would work) the mediator was scratching his head at this bc he never heard any similar situation.
The woman tried quoting the lion king - "I hope you learned your lesson, it's the circle of life" I was LOLing in the mediation room and started saying hakuna matata - the mediator threw his hands up and asked if we were going to trial - at least the plaintif and I agreed on one thing - we were going to trial.
After the judge dismissed the case, I thankd him and said "oh, and hakuna matata" neither he nor the rest of the court got it, but the plaintif looked pissed... I left before I could get in any trouble - didn't need to explain to anyone how I was slapped with contempt for mocking the plaintif.

 

[Latigo]

sued for attorney fees

You posts are so jumbled and confusing I can't tell where you are.

You head your post with "Sued for attorney fees for a citizen's complaint".

You identify those "citizen's complaints" as being four separate traffic violations that you caused to be brought against a woman motorist with whom you were involved in a motor vehicle collision.

You go on to recite that she returned the favor by pressing similar charges against you.

Then you describe her attorney present during a mediation process to explore settlement (of what I can't tell), much childish display and mockery by both, each dropping their separate traffic charges and the judge dismissing the case(s).

You add that after the case(s) were dismissed she announced in open court that she was going to sue you for her attorney fees. Which she followed up with a letter to the same effect.

And you have expressed great concern over the expense of defending such a lawsuit. "I really can't afford an attorney or to pay for someone else's . . . . . (sic)"
___________________

NOW, after reading my response, you tell us that she doesn't have grounds to sue for her attorney fees, ("she has no case") because all charges for traffic violations were dismissed.

The only conclusion I can make from the reversal from worry and doubt to complacency and confidence is that you somehow think that the issue of probable cause necessary to sustain her lawsuit action against you for malicious prosecution has been resolved in your favor. That the issue is somehow res adjudicata.

IT HAS NOT AND IS NOT!

How could it be so? It was not an issue in the protracted court proceedings you have described. She only brought up the subject after those proceedings were ended

If anything, (excepting that it would be excluded as inadmissible in a subsequent civil lawsuit) your voluntary withdrawal of the criminal charges against her would be evidence that you lacked probable cause.