Sued by a debt collector in Wisconsin? Your return date is already set.

Your summons sets a return date, 8 to 30 days after it was issued. By then you must file a written answer, appear, or both — the summons says which. Say nothing, and the plaintiff may win by default — and Wisconsin allows a judgment to be collected by garnishing wages. We complete the court's own answer form with your words for a flat $149.

Sued in Indiana, Connecticut, Florida or Ohio instead? Indiana · Connecticut · Florida · Ohio.

Check my return date Text us your case number
  • Not a law firm — we say so plainly
  • Check your case on WCCA, the courts' own site
  • Flat fee, no hourly billing
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Tx Civil Help Inc, a Texas corporation Payments through Stripe Non-attorney document preparation How to check we're real
A woman in a quilted vest on the porch of a white clapboard Wisconsin farmhouse, reading a letter she has just opened, calm
A small-claims case goes into WCCA, the courts' public record, when it is filed; the summons reaches you later — that gap is your head start.

Check the record

Is this real?

Don't take our word for it. Wisconsin circuit court cases are public record on WCCA, the court system's own site. Type the case number from our message or your papers: we decode it, then you check it yourself on WCCA with your county — a small-claims number repeats in every county.

Decode your case number

Type it exactly as it appears on our message or your papers.

Year
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Case type
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Number
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County
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Search it on WCCA How to search, step by step
A man in a work jacket at a small table at night beside a lamp, court papers in front of him, a calendar on the wall
Most people find out what the date meant after it's gone. Wis. Stat. 799.05(3): every summons specifies a return date and time. Wis. Stat. 799.22: miss it, and the court may enter judgment.

Your return date

How long do you actually have?

In Wisconsin small claims there is no day count to work out. The summons prints a return date and time, and says whether to file a written answer, appear, or both by then. Enter the date on your summons.

—pick a date

Your return date appears here, with the day of the week and the days left.

Read from the date you enter, not computed. What you must do by then — file a written answer, appear, or both — is marked on your summons and set by your county's rules; some counties want a written answer by noon on the last business day before. Always confirm with the clerk — we'll help you check, free.

The cost of doing nothing

What silence costs.

In eight days of October 2026 (11–18 October), debt buyers, banks and lenders filed 320 small-claims cases in 18 Wisconsin counties outside Milwaukee — and 258 in Milwaukee County alone.1 A judgment can be collected by garnishing wages and bank accounts.

Doing nothing vs. answering

What they ask the court to order you to pay—
The court's answer form, completed with us$149

A woman in a camel coat on the stone steps of a columned courthouse, holding a folder of documents, calm and confident
Debt buyers and banks sue in Wisconsin small claims for claims up to $10,000, and the court has its own answer form. The rules that protect you are written down, and they don't change because you don't have a lawyer.

Your rights

What the law gives you.

A lawsuit is a claim, not a verdict. Here is what Wisconsin's rules ask of each side.

What the rules ask of the plaintiff

  • Serve the summons at least 8 days before the return date (Wis. Stat. 799.05(3))
  • On a credit-card claim, state the balance on a date certain and the charges, interest and payments since (Wis. Stat. 425.109(1)(d))
  • Provide copies of the writings if you ask in writing by the return date, before any default judgment — a billing statement showing the balance counts (Wis. Stat. 425.109(2))
  • Sue in a proper county (Wis. Stat. 421.401)

If a debt buyer is suing you: the FTC found debt buyers paid about four cents per dollar of face value (2013).

Your job

  • File the court's answer form, appear, or both — as your summons says — by the return date (Wis. Stat. 799.22)
  • Attend every date the court sets after that: a trial, pretrial or mediation

We complete the court's form with your words. You sign it, mail the plaintiff a copy and file it — and bring it on the return date if your summons says to appear.

A judgment needs proof.If you don't appear or answer as your summons says, the court may enter judgment on proof of the facts the plaintiff is entitled to.Wis. Stat. 799.22(2), (3)
The court has its own answer form.You mark whether the claim is contested and give your reasons in your own words. No notary is needed.Form SC-5200V · Wis. Stat. 799.20
Documents on request.On a credit-card account, the plaintiff must provide copies of the writings showing your obligation if you ask in writing by the return date — and no default judgment may be entered until it does. A billing statement showing the total balance is enough.Wis. Stat. 425.109(1)(h), (2)
Where the case belongs.A consumer credit case belongs in the county where the customer resides or is personally served, where any collateral is, or where the credit was obtained or signed for.Wis. Stat. 421.401
Old debt has a time limit.An action on a contract must be started within 6 years after it accrues; after that, the right itself is extinguished.Wis. Stat. 893.43, 893.05
Most of your pay stays yours.Even after a judgment, 80% of disposable earnings is exempt from garnishment — and all of it when household income is below the poverty line or you receive need-based public assistance.Wis. Stat. 812.34(2)
Some money can't be touched.Social Security and veterans' benefits are protected by federal law, and Wisconsin exempts up to $5,000 in bank and credit-union accounts kept for personal use.42 U.S.C. §407 · 38 U.S.C. §5301 · Wis. Stat. 815.18(3)(k)
Debt collectors have rules too.Federal law bars debt collectors from false statements and threats, and from calls before 8 am or after 9 pm.15 U.S.C. §1692c, e
A default can be reopened.There is no appeal from a default judgment, but the court may reopen it on a motion showing good cause, made within 12 months after the judgment.Wis. Stat. 799.29(1)
If a debt buyer is suing.The Federal Trade Commission's study of the industry found debt buyers paid about 4 cents per dollar of face value. (Many Wisconsin suits are brought by the original bank or lender instead.)FTC, 2013
This is information about how Wisconsin's rules work, in plain English. It is not advice about what you should do in your case. We complete the court's form with your information and your own words, and we'll tell you when we think a lawyer should look at yours.

The package

What we prepare, and how it works.

Text us your case numberWe confirm the case in the public record and text you back, usually the same day.
We read your court recordCounty, case number, plaintiff and the filings so far on WCCA. Then we ask you the few questions only you can answer — and for a photo of your summons, which shows the return date and what it asks you to do.
You review it, then signThe form is completed for your case. Read it on your phone and tell us what to change; then you sign it.
You file itMail the plaintiff a copy and file the signed original with the Clerk of Circuit Court by the deadline on your summons — and bring it on the return date if your summons says to appear. There is no fee to file an answer. We stay on text and email until it's in.
Page one of the Wisconsin small-claims answer form SC-5200V, completed by MyCivilHelp for a fictitious defendant, watermarked SAMPLE
Page one of the court's own answer form, completed by our builder for a fictitious defendant. Yours carries your county, your case number, and your own words.
$149flat, for the whole package
  • The court's answer form (SC-5200V)Completed with your information, the box you choose, and your reasons in your own words — never ours.
  • A document request, if you want oneOn a credit-card claim, your written request for the account documents under Wisconsin's Consumer Act, ready to sign and mail.
  • Your return date, from your summonsWith your county's own deadline when it is earlier, at the top of your instructions.
  • Filing instructionsFiling with the clerk and mailing the plaintiff a copy — or what to bring on the return date — step by step.
  • What happens nextA trial, pretrial or mediation; a court commissioner's decision and the 10 or 15 days to ask for a trial; reopening a default — what each one means.
  • Questions answered by text and emailUntil it's filed, and after.
You sign the court's own form and file it with the Clerk of Circuit Court — we tell you exactly how.
Start with your case number

You review it, you sign it, you file it, you stay in control. We don't give legal advice or promise an outcome — we prepare the documents you choose to file, and we get the details right.

About us

Who we are — and who we aren't.

MyCivilHelp is the Indiana, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio and Wisconsin service of Tx Civil Help Inc, which has prepared debt-defense documents for people sued by debt buyers since 2025. We are not a law firm and we will never pretend to be one.

Founder & software developer

Uma Maheshwar Reddy Thipparthi

Uma founded Tx Civil Help in 2025 after seeing how routinely people lose debt cases by default: beaten by a missed deadline rather than by the facts. The company was built around a single idea: the paperwork that protects you shouldn't cost more than the debt you're being sued over.

He wrote the software that reads the public docket, finds the date that applies and prepares each package, and he sets how we operate: flat, published pricing instead of hourly billing, plain English instead of legalese, and a written reply to every person who contacts us, whether or not they ever become a client.

Uma is not an attorney, and we do not give legal advice. We prepare court documents at your direction.

View founder profile on LinkedIn

We'd rather you pick the right option than the one that pays us. Here is every route, including the free ones.

Do nothingEverythingA judgment can be entered without you, and Wisconsin allows wage and bank garnishment after it.
Hire an attorneyVariesThe strongest option if your case is large or complicated — and we'll tell you when we think it is.
Online form generatorVariesYou answer a questionnaire and software fills a template. Reading the record and getting the details right are on you.
Do it yourselfFreeAbsolutely possible: the court's answer form (SC-5200V) is free and you complete it yourself. The courts' self-help pages have resources; legal aid may help if you qualify.
MyCivilHelp$149We read your actual court record, prepare the complete package for your case, and answer your questions by text and email until it's filed.
How did you know I was sued?

Wisconsin circuit court filings are public record on WCCA, the court system's own site. We read its public list of new small-claims cases — the same record you can search yourself, which is exactly why we hand you the case number and county and ask you to check.

What if I haven't been served yet?

Then you're in the best position of anyone reading this. The summons prints the return date and says what to do by then — and it can come by a process server or by mail. If court papers came to your address while you were away, look for them now.

Is $149 really the whole price?

Yes — that is our fee, not the debt. No hourly billing, no percentage, no charge for questions. There is no court fee to file an answer (Wis. Stat. 814.62(3)).

What if I actually owe the money?

Plenty of people do. The court's answer form lets you say the matter is not contested, or that it is, with your own reasons. Which box you mark, and what you say, is your choice — we complete the form the way you tell us.

Answering also keeps you in the case. If you do not appear or answer as your summons says, the plaintiff may win without you.

I already have a judgment against me. Is it over?

Not necessarily. There is no appeal from a default judgment in small claims, but the court may reopen one on a motion showing good cause, made within 12 months after the judgment (Wis. Stat. 799.29(1)). Whether that applies depends on the record. Text us the case number and county and we'll tell you what the court file shows, at no charge, and whether we think a lawyer should look at it.

Who is behind MyCivilHelp?

Tx Civil Help Inc, a Texas corporation founded in 2025 by Uma Maheshwar Reddy Thipparthi, who runs it today. You can reach us at [email protected] or by text at (888) 396-7107. Texas is where we started; Indiana, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio and Wisconsin are where we work next.

Before you trust us

Worried this is a scam? Good. Check.

A text about a lawsuit from a company you've never heard of should make you suspicious. Every item below is a record we don't control. Check them, then decide.

The company is on the public record

Tx Civil Help Inc is a Texas corporation, Secretary of State file no. 806499657, at 5900 Balcones Dr #13025, Austin, TX 78731. Search the name on the Texas Comptroller's own site.

Search the Texas Comptroller

A named owner you can look up

Uma Maheshwar Reddy Thipparthi founded the company in 2025 and runs it today. His professional profile is public, and the company he runs is the one that will be preparing your documents.

Uma on LinkedIn

Your case is on WCCA

We only know what the court published. Check your case yourself on WCCA, run by the Wisconsin court system: search by your county and the case number on your summons.

Open WCCA

Payment goes through Stripe

Card details never come to us. The receipt says Tx Civil Help Inc, the charge is $149, once, and there is no subscription. The Texas site takes payment the same way.

See the Texas site
What we will never ask forYour Social Security number, your bank login, or a card number by text or email. And we never ask you to pay before you've checked your case on WCCA.
How we reach youTexts come from (888) 396-7107 and email from [email protected]. We don't phone you; anything else isn't us. Text us before you decide anything. Verifying costs nothing.

Step-by-step instructions for searching WCCA are on the verify page.

Text message updates

Get case updates by text

Give us your mobile number and we'll text you about your case — deadline reminders, answers to your questions, and confirmation when your documents are ready. This is opt-in: we only text people who ask us to.

SMS terms & consent

How you opt in. We send text messages only to people who have asked us to: by submitting the form on this page, by texting us first, or by giving us your mobile number when you contact us by email or through this site. We do not send text messages to people who have not opted in.

What we send. Case notifications, deadline reminders, replies to your questions, and confirmation when your documents are ready. Message frequency varies by your case. Message and data rates may apply.

How to stop. Reply STOP to any message and we stop immediately and permanently. Reply HELP for help, or email [email protected]. You can also opt out at any time by emailing us.

Your privacy. We never sell, rent, or share your mobile number with third parties, and we do not share it for marketing purposes. Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.

Questions: [email protected] · MyCivilHelp is a service of Tx Civil Help Inc, 5900 Balcones Dr #13025, Austin, TX 78731.

Check my return date — free