what if I avoid service?

[ostrander8633]

state= MI

I have an accountant trying to sue me for a bill I have paid what I feel is fair charges on(I paid him $160, he is trying to charge me $1400 for tax prep.
He is trying to have me served. I have not intentionally avoided the service, but the court officer first left his business card taped to my door to call him and now has taped some very threatening letter on my door to call him. What options do I have if I don't call him? I really don't want to make any of this easy for this jerk.

$1400 is still small claims court, correct?

 

[presutin]

Yes, the amount is still within the small claims court cap. If you are not calling him, you will be served in absentia. Best thing for you is to see if you can settle this out of court or if you are truly determined, fight the charges in court.

 

[Michael Wechsler]

Agreed. You aren't being served here by the plaintiff's server either. If you've got a dispute, why not get this all over and done with? $160 sounds like very little money in comparison to the bill. I'm wondering whether you want to show up in court and potentially get spanked for the entire amount if you don't have a valid defense, which I haven't heard yet either.

 

[ostrander8633]

my defense

my defense is this: out of college I bought a rental property(duplex i lived in). Since I know nothing about tax filing for a rental I decided to see an accountant who could do so. all the work is involved in setting the property up the first year. So, for my first prop, he did my taxes for $300 approx. After that, he would send me an organizer each year where I am to fill in what has changed from the previous year. After that, it's plug and play. this gentleman charges $130/hr. I have never entered into a contract with him.
After 3 years of owning this property, I bought another one(duplex). I also got married that year and had alot of uncovered med. bills etc.
That year, he does my taxes and charged me $2000. I balked at first and did not understand how my hours into a return went from roughly 2.3 to over 7 times that!! I attributed it to all the changes in my circumstance and I paid him, promptly as I always have( I never paid him later than the due date on the bill).
The next year, he does my return again and then sends me a bill for $1400(the one in question). I was furious because I had put 2 hours into the client organizer updating the changes. All he had to do was plug and play.
I just happened to be lamenting my tax bill with a friend who also has rentals(4 in fact) and he fell over when I told him what I paid.
He recommended me to another accountant who looked over the return and told me it was so straight forward that he wouldn't put more than 2 hours into it $75/hr. So, I took his assessment of $150 worth of work and I paid him $160.
I have had several conversations with his office asking for a detailed breakdown of hours and never rec'd it. He must be hurting for money, because it's been almost 2 years since I made my payment. By the way, the guy who I was referred to has charged me consistently $150 the last 2 years to do my taxes for both properites.
I can bring this accountant into court with me to testify as to the padding in the bill.
I have not made contact with the court officer. Should I? What does service in absentia mean....he will post it in the paper?

I had read somewhere that if they had the hearing without me, I could contest the default ruling claiming a civil rights violation, that I was not served?

Thanks!

 

[dee_dub]

Service in absentia means he could post it to your door, leave it with somebody at your residence, or whatever else is deemed to be good service where you are.

If you choose not to go to the hearing, the accountant would likely be awarded default judgment. I wouldn't count on winning a civil rights claim. Substituted service is deemed by law to be good service - that is, under law, you *were* served.

You could try making him an offer that doesn't chintz him on his hourly rate. You agreed to his rate of $130/hr, and the other accountant said it should have been two hours work - according to my calculator, that's $260. No point in offering anything higher if he can't itemize your costs, because that's what the court is going to ask him to do.