I work for a small business and we received a summons indicating that
we were being sued.  Apparently, we didn't reply to the summons within
the time frame required.  We then received paperwork indicating a
default judgement was filed.  Since this is a civil case and not small
claims, is there a way to vacate this judgement? I found several links
for forms to vacate a judgement for small claims, but again, this is
not a small claims matter.

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Clarification of Question by daman13-ga on 23 Jun 2005 10:21 PDT

Btw, the business is located in Santa Clara County, California

Hi Daman-ga,

I?ve found some information to help you vacate or appeal your Civil
Case. I did a Google Search for California civil court Santa Clara
County, and got these search results.
://www.google.com/search?num=100&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&c2coff=1&biw=1024&q=california+civil+court+santa+clara+county&btnG=Search

I then went to the Civil Court portion of the Santa Clara Superior
Court?s Website. http://www.sccsuperiorcourt.org/civil/default.htm

You can contact the Civil Court by phone at this #.
Civil 	(408) 882-2100
Civil Law & Motion 	(408) 882-2100

Vacate is the same as appeal. ?The state court has prepared a manual,
available online, that describes in simple terms the civil appellate
process. The manual will help persons who are representing themselves,
but can also be used by lawyers or anyone looking for information on
civil appeals.? http://www.scselfservice.org/civ/civresources.htm#appeal

This information is intended for those who represent themselves.
DISCLAIMER FROM THE SITE: ?The materials included here are not legal
advice and may not be used as legal authority. The primary legal
authority for the practices described in this manual is the California
Rules of Court. (The California Rules of Court are sometimes referred
to in this manual as "CRC," for example, "CRC rule 3.") The manual
does not replace or supersede the California Rules of Court. It is
merely a general summary of the applicable rules. The rules themselves
are subject to change, and you should consult them directly. In the
event the information here differs from the California Rules of Court,
you must follow the California Rules of Court.?
http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courts/courtsofappeal/4thDistrictDiv1/4dca_proper.htm

All the forms and steps are clearly outlined for you here. Since I
don?t know your specific case, I?ll let you dig through it. Just
remember, since you?re in Civil Court and not Small Claims, you can
hire a lawyer to help you with the case. If you?re unsure on what to
do, I recommend you finding a lawyer, as my advice is not professional
legal advice, merely help in the right direction.

If this answer requires further explanation, please request
clarification before rating it, and I'll be happy to look into this
further.

Nenna-GA
Google Answers Researcher

Nenna and Daman13, let me add a few thoughts as well.

California Code of Civil Procedure Section 473 provides for relief
from default when the default was taken as the result of "mistake,
surprise, inadvertence, or excusable neglect."  Although granting such
relief is in the court's discretion, I will say that the majority of
such motions ARE GRANTED if they are made in a timely fashion (within
six months from entry of default).  California law favors the
resolution of disputes on the merits, rather than on technicalities
and procedural issues.

Good luck!

Sorry, one other thing.
With all respect, Nenna, "vacate" is NOT NOT NOT the same as "appeal."
 A motion to vacate the judgment on the grounds of "mistake, surprise,
inadvertence, or excusable neglect" is available under Code of Civil
Procedure Section 473.  That is NOT the same thing as "appealing" the
judgment to the First District Court of Appeals (that's the relevant
appeals court for Santa Clara County).  An appeal of the judgment at
this point would fail -- the judgment itself was properly entered, if
the business was in default.

Daman13, Nenna's advice to obtain counsel is excellent, excellent
advise.  Only an experienced lawyer will likely be able to
successfully set aside the default under CCP Section 473.

Best of luck!

Please also remember that there is a difference between a default and
a default judgment.  A default is a clerical entry made by the clerk
of court indicating a defendant has not timely answered.  Only after a
default (sometimes called a clerk's default) is entered is an actual
default ~judgement~ entered.  It appears that daman13 is dealing with
a default judgment, not a simple clerk's default.  Fortunately the
standard for relief set forth in Cal Code Civ Pro Section 473 is the
same.  See http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=ccp&group=00001-01000&file=469-475

If it has been less than six months since the default judgement was
entered, you should be able to simply file a motion in the court where
the default judgment was entered asking the court to set it aside
based on mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect.  I
suggest you also read the article here:
http://home.earthlink.net/~geoffbryan/473.HTML

I would just like to ask one thing. I own and run a collections
company and, unfortunately, regularly make recommendations to my
clients to sue companies if they are unwilling to pay an owed debt.
What are the conditions surrounding this? If you owe the money, I'm
afraid that you would have a very difficult time getting a judgement
against you vacated. Also, did you receive the summons before the date
that you were supposed to appear?