Answer to Consumer Debt Collection Lawsuit — New Mexico District Court

STATE OF NEW MEXICO

COUNTY OF [________________]

[________________] JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT

No. [________________]

DEFENDANT'S ANSWER AND AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES

USE GATE — COMPLETE BEFORE DRAFTING

☐ The summons names a New Mexico district court. If it names Magistrate Court or Metropolitan Court, stop and use that court's current rules and forms.

☐ The claim is a consumer debt primarily for personal, family, or household purposes.

☐ The claim is not medical debt and is not secured by real property. Rule 1-009(J) has separate medical-debt provisions and refers to Form 4-301A for a medical-debt answer.

☐ Date and method of summons-and-complaint service verified: [________________________________]

☐ District-court response date calendared. Rules 1-004(B)(2) and 1-012(A) require service of a responsive pleading or motion within thirty (30) days after service of the summons and complaint: [__/__/____]

☐ Complaint, attachments, proof of service, payment records, correspondence, and credit reports preserved.

☐ Each defense and denial below has a good-faith factual and legal basis as required by Rule 1-011 NMRA.

I. APPEARANCE AND GENERAL RESPONSE

Defendant [NAME], appearing [☐ self-represented / ☐ through counsel], answers Plaintiff's Complaint as follows:

1. Defendant admits only the allegations expressly admitted below.

2. Defendant denies each allegation expressly denied below. Under Rule 1-008(B) NMRA, a denial must fairly meet the substance of the allegation.

3. When Defendant lacks knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief about an allegation's truth, Defendant states that lack of knowledge; under Rule 1-008(B), that statement has the effect of a denial.

4. Defendant denies every allegation requiring a response that is not expressly admitted. Rule 1-008(D) provides that an allegation requiring a responsive pleading, other than an allegation about the amount of damages, is admitted when not denied.

II. PARAGRAPH-BY-PARAGRAPH ANSWERS

Copy every numbered allegation from the Complaint. Admit only what is known to be true. If only part is true, identify the true part and deny the rest.

5. Complaint paragraph 1: [quote or summarize]

☐ Admit. ☐ Deny. ☐ Lack knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief and therefore deny.

Qualified response, if any: [________________________________]

6. Complaint paragraph 2: [quote or summarize]

☐ Admit. ☐ Deny. ☐ Lack knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief and therefore deny.

Qualified response, if any: [________________________________]

7. Complaint paragraph 3: [quote or summarize]

☐ Admit. ☐ Deny. ☐ Lack knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief and therefore deny.

Qualified response, if any: [________________________________]

8. Complaint paragraph [____]: [quote or summarize]

☐ Admit. ☐ Deny. ☐ Lack knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief and therefore deny.

Qualified response, if any: [________________________________]

[Repeat until every allegation is answered.]

III. CONSUMER-DEBT COMPLAINT AUDIT

Rule 1-009(J) and Rule 1-017(E) impose requirements on specified consumer-debt claimants. Mark only supported defects and attach the relevant complaint page or exhibit.

☐ Covered claim and approved-form compliance. Plaintiff acts in the ordinary course of business and seeks to collect covered consumer debt, but the initial pleading does not comply with Rule 1-009(J)(1), Rule 1-017(E), or current Form 4-226 NMRA. Defect: [________________________________]

☐ Writing not served and filed. Plaintiff referred to or relied on a writing on which the claim is founded but did not serve and file the original or a copy and did not obtain a good-cause excuse under Rule 1-009(J)(3). Writing: [________________________________]

☐ Collection agency pleading. Plaintiff is a collection agency suing on an assigned claim but did not plead specific facts showing it is the real party in interest as required by Rule 1-017(E)(1). Facts missing: [________________________________]

☐ Collection agency counsel. Rule 1-017(E)(1) states that a collection agency may not institute the authorized suit unless it appears through a licensed attorney. Current appearance: [________________________________]

☐ Non-original creditor affidavit. Plaintiff is not the original creditor but did not file the Rule 1-017(E)(2) affidavit establishing the chain of title or assignment from the original creditor through Plaintiff. Missing link or document: [________________________________]

☐ Affidavit / business-record attachments. The chain affidavit does not state admissible personal-knowledge facts, establish the affiant's competence, establish the specified business-record foundation or reliance on a qualifying certification, or attach the business records required by Rule 1-017(E)(2). Defect: [________________________________]

IV. AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES

Rule 1-008(C) requires affirmative pleading of listed defenses and other avoidance matters. Select only defenses supported by the facts. Rule 1-012(H) warns that personal-jurisdiction, venue, process, and service defenses may be waived if not timely raised.

☐ 1. Statute of limitations. The claim accrued outside the applicable limitations period. NMSA 1978 § 37-1-3(A) provides six years for an action founded on a written contract; § 37-1-4 provides four years for actions founded on accounts and unwritten contracts and for its other listed actions. The claim's legal characterization, governing law, accrual date, tolling, and revival must be established rather than assumed.

Alleged contract or account type: [________________________________]

Date Plaintiff alleges default / accrual: [________________________________]

Filing date: [________________________________]

Counsel's limitations analysis: [________________________________]

☐ 2. Payment / credit / offset. Plaintiff failed to credit payments, refunds, insurance, returns, settlements, or other amounts. Supporting records and calculation: [________________________________]

☐ 3. Accord and satisfaction / release / settlement. The obligation was resolved or released by: [________________________________]

☐ 4. Discharge in bankruptcy. The alleged debt was discharged or is subject to an applicable bankruptcy order. Court, case, and date: [________________________________]

☐ 5. Failure of consideration / fraud / illegality / statute of frauds / waiver / estoppel. Specific supported defense and facts: [________________________________]

☐ 6. Plaintiff is not the real party in interest. Plaintiff cannot establish present ownership or entitlement to enforce the alleged debt under Rule 1-017, including the consumer-debt requirements in Paragraph E. Missing proof: [________________________________]

☐ 7. Failure to state a claim. The Complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted under Rule 1-012(B)(6) because: [________________________________]

☐ 8. Lack of personal jurisdiction / improper venue / insufficient process / insufficient service. Rule 1-012(B)(2)-(5) defense and supporting facts: [________________________________]

☐ 9. Unauthorized or unproven amount. Plaintiff has not proven the principal, interest, fees, credits, or contractual or statutory basis for the amount demanded. Disputed itemization: [________________________________]

☐ 10. Other supported avoidance or affirmative defense: [________________________________]

V. TIME-BARRED-DEBT COMMUNICATION SCREEN

12.2.12.8 NMAC requires a debt collector attempting to collect debt in New Mexico to determine in good faith whether the debt is time-barred. Section 12.2.12.9 NMAC requires specified disclosures before collecting or attempting to collect a debt the collector knows or has reason to know is time-barred.

The rule also warns that a payment, signed admission or acknowledgment, signed new promise to pay, or signed waiver can renew the debt and restart the filing period. Do not make a payment or sign a debt-related statement without case-specific legal advice.

☐ Collector communication sought payment on potentially time-barred debt: [date / method / sender: ________________________________]

☐ Required front-page written disclosure or oral disclosure was missing or defective: [________________________________]

☐ Payment, signed acknowledgment, new promise, or waiver issue exists: [________________________________]

☐ Counsel will evaluate whether these facts support a defense, counterclaim, separate claim, or regulatory complaint: [________________________________]

VI. FDCPA AND COUNTERCLAIM SCREEN

Do not plead an FDCPA claim merely because a lawsuit was filed. Section 1692g(d) states that a formal pleading in a civil action is not an initial communication for § 1692g(a). A § 1692g issue generally requires analysis of qualifying communications, the applicable notice, any timely written dispute, and collection activity before verification.

Rule 1-013(A) requires a counterclaim that exists when the Answer is served and arises from the same transaction or occurrence, subject to the rule's exceptions. Counsel must decide whether any federal or state claim is compulsory and plead it with its own elements and facts.

Section 1692k permits actual damages, court-allowed additional damages up to $1,000 in an individual action, and costs plus a reasonable attorney fee in a successful action; § 1692k(d) sets a one-year period from the violation. These remedies do not establish that a violation occurred.

☐ No counterclaim is asserted in this Answer.

☐ Counterclaim is attached or pleaded below after counsel's review: [________________________________]

VII. PRAYER

Defendant requests that the Court:

A. Deny relief that Plaintiff has not proven;

B. Dismiss any claim that is legally barred, with the form of dismissal determined by the Court;

C. Apply all proven payments, credits, offsets, defenses, and counterclaim relief;

D. Award costs or attorney fees only to the extent authorized by current law, rule, or contract; and

E. Grant any other proper relief.

VIII. JURY-DEMAND GATE

Rule 1-038(A) requires a written jury demand no later than ten (10) days after service of the last pleading directed to the issue. Paragraph C requires a jury-fee deposit, and Paragraph D provides waiver rules. Confirm whether a jury right exists, the last pleading, the deadline, jury size, and current fee before filing.

☐ Defendant demands a jury on every issue triable by jury and has satisfied Rule 1-038 NMRA.

☐ No jury demand is made in this filing.

IX. SIGNATURE

Respectfully submitted:

[________________________________]

[DEFENDANT NAME / ATTORNEY NAME]

[New Mexico Bar No., if applicable]

[Street or mailing address]

[City, State ZIP]

[Telephone]

[Email, if used]

Date: [__/__/____]

X. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I certify that on [__/__/____], I served a true and correct copy of this Answer on every required party or counsel using a method permitted by Rule 1-005 NMRA and any applicable electronic-filing rule or court order:

Method: [________________________________]

Recipient and address / service account: [________________________________]

[________________________________]

Signature

CURRENT OFFICIAL SOURCES

• NMOneSource — current unannotated Rules of Civil Procedure for the District Courts
• NMOneSource — current NMSA Chapter 37
• New Mexico Administrative Code — 12.2.12 NMAC
• Office of the Law Revision Counsel — 15 U.S.C. § 1692g
• Office of the Law Revision Counsel — 15 U.S.C. § 1692k

Current official sources and every citation in this file were checked on August 14, 2026. The current district-court rules include amendments effective December 31, 2025 to Rules 1-008 and 1-009. Citation-index screening found no enacted 2025 or 2026 amendment to §§ 37-1-3 or 37-1-4; the 2026 wildfire-liability bills referencing § 37-1-4 were postponed indefinitely.