An Export woman said on Wednesday that she settled her federal debt collection lawsuit against a San Diego-based law firm and Target because her four-year battle wore her down.
"You start out with your guns blazing," Vicki Higgins said. "They can keep it tied up in court forever."
The battle began in 2008 when law firm Patenaude & Felix tried to collect $5,685.94 in charges run up by another Vicki Higgins, that one with an Ohio address, a different birth date and a different Social Security number. Higgins ran up legal fees defending herself only to have the law firm, through Carnegie lawyer Gregg Morris, drop the lawsuit.
She sued Morris, the law firm and Target in federal court for violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. She settled with Target in January. Her attorney and an attorney representing Morris and the law firm on Tuesday filed a joint motion to dismiss the case with neither side awarded attorneys fees and costs.
Higgins said she can't discuss the settlement because of a confidentiality agreement. Morris and Ray Patenaude, CEO of the law firm, and lawyers representing Higgins and the law firm couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
