Indiana Commercial Foreclosure Law: In Indiana, A Summary Judgment Is Preferable To A Default Judgment

Today,I am borrowing from Indiana Commercial Foreclosure Law blog. Its post, In Indiana, A Summary Judgment Is Preferable To A Default Judgment, may be a bit too much of a technical issue but this is something both lawyers and non-lawyers need to know about:

"Is notice documented? An important matter, implicit in the Anderson opinion, is to prove that the defendant had notice of the summary judgment proceedings. In instances of unrepresented parties, one way to do this is to provide the party, by certified mail, with copies of the motion and any order setting the matter for hearing. (A hearing is not mandated by T.R. 56, unless a party requests one, but it is fairly common for Indiana trial courts to hold a hearing.) Lender’s counsel then can attach the letter(s), with the certified mail return receipt(s), to an affidavit for submission to the court. If the plaintiff can show that the defendant had actual notice of the proceedings, but failed to take any action, then such proof reduces dramatically the chances of setting aside the judgment in the trial court or overturning the judgment on appeal. Conversely, the easiest way for a defendant to get a second chance is to convince a court that it did not know about a motion or a hearing."