Is there any means of preventing a debit collector or bank from obtaining a judgement against me? Do I have any legal methods prior to a judgement being filed?

You can work out a satisfactory payment plan. You can prove at the judgment hearing that the debt is not valid or not yours.

You can show where you havve offered a reasonable payment plan and they have refused. You can go bankrupt (normally)

You need to hire an attorney to review the debt and give you the legal options

Its simple, pay the bill. But if you don't pay then you force them to obtain a judgement against you to collect on the debt.

YOu havethe right to defend against the alleged debt if the file suit.

They must possess the original contract or note, they must product that note in court.

If no note or contract hen they have no case. YOu must appear in count and demand to see the original .

I am not an expert by any means but I recently went through something similar. A local bank was suing me for a judgement. I contacted the President and Vice President and arranged a meeting to discuss the fact that I was willing to pay the debt but just could not pay the amount they were requesting in full or in large monthly amounts. I provided them with an amount I could pay and after a few days we entered into a contract with those agreements, causing the judgement to be withdrawn unless I fail to follow through with my repayment plan. However, you must be willing and able to pay something every month and not miss a payment.