CS-2026-00126 - Midland Credit Management, Inc. v. Caleb Jackson

What's This Case About?

Let’s be real: the most gladiator-in-the-courts moment in this case is not a dramatic courtroom showdown, a surprise witness, or even a single appearance by Caleb Jackson. No, the most insane thing here is that a debt collector in Minnesota is swearing under penalty of perjury—like, actual legal oath stuff—that a man in Oklahoma owes $5,800… and the whole case hinges on a guy named Jacob Biard reading a spreadsheet and saying, “Yep, the computer says he didn’t pay.” That’s it. That’s the trial. A man, a monitor, and a notary.

So who are we even talking about? On one side, you’ve got Midland Credit Management, Inc.—a debt buyer, which is basically the vulture of the financial world. These companies don’t lend money. They don’t issue credit cards. What they do is swoop in after banks have given up on collecting, buy those deadbeat accounts for pennies on the dollar, and then try to collect the full amount like nothing ever happened. Think of them as the guys who buy expired coupons at a discount and then try to use them at the grocery store with a straight face. Only here, instead of expired yogurt, it’s expired debt.

On the other side: Caleb Jackson of Lincoln County, Oklahoma. That’s about all we know. No criminal record cited, no dramatic backstory, no indication he’s a serial credit card ghoster. He’s just… a guy. A guy who, at some point, opened two store-branded credit cards—probably one at a Petland (yes, like the pet store) and another through Credit One Bank, which is the financial equivalent of that sketchy guy who offers you a credit card in the mall kiosk while you’re just trying to buy socks. He used them, made some payments, and then—somewhere between 2024 and 2026—stopped. And now, years later, a legal specialist in St. Cloud, Minnesota, is filing sworn testimony about Caleb’s financial life like he’s testifying at a Senate hearing.

Here’s how it went down, according to the paperwork: Caleb opened the Comenity Capital Bank/Petland card back on August 26, 2022. Maybe he got a puppy. Maybe he just really needed a hamster cage. Who knows. He made his last payment on March 11, 2024. Then radio silence. The account was “charged off” on October 31, 2024—bank-speak for “we’ve given up, this is a loss.” Around November 22, 2024, Midland bought the rights to that debt and became the new owner of Caleb’s unpaid $4,877.82. That’s four thousand, eight hundred, seventy-seven dollars and eighty-two cents… allegedly for whatever pet-related purchases he made nearly two years ago.

Then there’s the second account: Credit One Bank, N.A., opened December 9, 2022. Last payment? January 24, 2024. Charged off July 29, 2024. Midland picked up the rights on August 20, 2024. Balance: $926.23. Total owed? $5,804.05. And how do we know all this? Because Jacob Biard, Legal Specialist at Midland, sat at his desk, pulled up the digital file, and swore—under penalty of perjury—that the numbers add up. He didn’t talk to Caleb. He didn’t see a receipt. He didn’t witness a single transaction. But he does have access to records, and that, in the eyes of the law, is enough—for now.

So why are we in court? Because Midland wants a judgment. A judgment is like the legal version of a gold star: it officially says, “Yes, Caleb Jackson owes this money.” And once they have that, they can start garnishing wages, freezing bank accounts, or just haunting his credit report like a financial poltergeist. The claims? Two counts of “petition for indebtedness”—which sounds way fancier than “we bought some debt and now we want it paid.” But that’s it. No fraud. No breach of contract. No wild accusations of identity theft or forged signatures. Just: “He didn’t pay. We own the debt. Give us the money.”

And what do they want? $5,804.05. Plus interest. Plus court costs. Is that a lot? Well, for a debt collector, it’s a payday. For the average Oklahoman, it’s nearly two months’ rent in a modest apartment. It’s a used car down payment. It’s a full year of Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and every other streaming service, with money left over for popcorn. It’s not life-changing money, but it’s not nothing. And let’s not forget—Midland probably paid way less than $5,800 for these two accounts. Some debt buyers pay as little as 4 cents on the dollar. If that’s the case here, they might’ve paid under $300 to acquire $5,800 in potential revenue. That’s a 1,800% markup—if they win.

Now, here’s our take: the most absurd part of this whole thing isn’t that a company is suing over a few thousand bucks. It’s not even that the evidence is a guy in Minnesota swearing that a database is accurate. It’s that this is normal. This is how debt collection works in America. A chain of financial handoffs: bank → charge-off → debt buyer → lawsuit. The original lender doesn’t care anymore. They’ve already written it off. But Midland? They’re playing financial whack-a-mole, suing hundreds or thousands of people like Caleb Jackson across the country, hoping most won’t show up to court so they can get default judgments and start collecting. And often, they win—because who has time to fight a $5,800 lawsuit in rural Oklahoma while working two jobs and raising kids?

Are we rooting for Caleb? Honestly, we don’t know if he’s a deadbeat or a guy who got buried under medical bills or just forgot about an old card. But we are rooting for the idea that you shouldn’t get sued by a company that wasn’t even the one who lent you the money, based solely on a spreadsheet and a notarized PDF. We’re rooting for a system where debt doesn’t just get traded like baseball cards and then weaponized years later. And we’re definitely rooting for the day when Jacob Biard gets a hobby that doesn’t involve swearing under oath about strangers’ credit histories.

But until then? Welcome to American debt court. Where the stakes are real, the paperwork is endless, and the drama is… well, let’s just say we won’t be making a Netflix docuseries. But we might make a bingo card.

Case Overview

$5,804 Demand Petition

Jurisdiction

District Court, Oklahoma

Filing Attorney

William L. Nixon, Jr.

LOVE, BEAL & NIXON, P.C.

Relief Sought

$5,804 Monetary

Plaintiffs

Midland Credit Management, Inc. business
Rep: LOVE, BEAL & NIXON, P.C.

Defendants

Caleb Jackson individual

Claims

#	Cause of Action	Description
1	petition for indebtedness	allegations of debt
2	petition for indebtedness	allegations of debt

Petition Text

1,199 words

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF LINCOLN COUNTY STATE OF OKLAHOMA Midland Credit Management, Inc. Plaintiff, vs. Caleb Jackson, Defendant. PETITION FOR INDEBTEDNESS COMES NOW Plaintiff, by and through its undersigned attorneys who hereby enter their appearance herein, and for cause of action against Defendant alleges and states: COUNT I 1. CREDIT ONE BANK, N.A., provided credit to the defendant on account number XXXXXXXXXXXXXX4164. Defendant defaulted on the obligation. The account has been assigned to Plaintiff. 2. Defendant owes Plaintiff $926.23. An Affidavit of Account is attached hereto and incorporated by reference. COUNT 2 1. COMENITY CAPITAL BANK, provided credit to the defendant on account number XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX3953. Defendant defaulted on the obligation. The account has been assigned to Plaintiff. 2. Defendant owes Plaintiff $4,877.82. An Affidavit of Account is attached hereto and incorporated by reference. WHEREFORE, Plaintiff prays for Judgment against the Defendant in the sum of $5,804.05, with interest at the statutory rate, all court costs, and for such other relief as the Court may deem just and proper. William L. Nixon, Jr., #012804 Harley L. Homjak, #019736 Gracelyn Porras Dillingham, #35852 Jenifer A. Gani, #021876 Daniela Westfahl, #36242 Mariah S. Ellicott, #36309 Benjamin F. Brackett, #36580 LOVE, BEAL & NIXON, P.C. Attorney for Plaintiff P.O. Box 32738 Oklahoma City, OK 73123 Telephone: 405-720-0565 E-Mail: [email protected] STATE OF OKLAHOMA Midland Credit Management, Inc, Plaintiff -vs- Jackson, Caleb, Defendant(s). AFFIDAVIT OF JACOB BIARD Jacob Biard, whose business address is 600 W. Saint Germain St Suite 200, St. Cloud, MN 56301-3616, certifies and says: 1. I am employed as a Legal Specialist and have access to pertinent account records for Midland Credit Management, Inc. ("Plaintiff" or "MCM"). I am a competent person over eighteen years of age, and make the statements herein based upon personal knowledge of those account records maintained by Plaintiff. Plaintiff is the current owner of, and was assigned all the rights, title and interest to Defendant's CREDIT ONE BANK, N.A. account XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX4164 (MCM Number 328495782) (hereinafter "the Account"). 2. I have access to and have reviewed the electronic records pertaining to the Account maintained by MCM and am authorized to make this affidavit on MCM's behalf. The electronic records reviewed consist of (i) data and records acquired from the seller or assignor when MCM purchased or was assigned the Account, which were incorporated into MCM's business records upon purchase or assignment, and (ii) data and records generated by MCM in connection with servicing the Account since the date the Account was purchased by or was assigned to MCM. 3. I am familiar with and trained on the manner and method by which MCM creates and maintains its business records pertaining to the Account, which consist of (i) data and documents acquired from the seller or assignor, and (ii) subsequent collection and/or servicing activities by MCM. The records are acquired or created, and are kept in the regular course of MCM's business. It was in the regular course of MCM's business for a person with knowledge of the subsequent collection and/or servicing activities recorded, and a business duty to report, to make the record or data compilation, or to transmit information thereof to be included in such record, or for such information to be posted in MCM's records by a computer or similar digital means. In the regular course of MCM's business, the record or compilation of the subsequent collection activities is made at or near the time of the act or event by MCM as a regular practice. 4. MCM's records show that Defendant(s) owed a balance of $926.23 as of 2026-01-02. 5. On or about 2024-08-20, Midland Credit Management, Inc became the successor in interest to this Account. 6. MCM's records show that: 1) the Account was opened on 2022-12-09; 2) the last payment posted to the Account on 2024-01-24; and 3) the Account was charged off on 2024-07-29. 7. If called to testify as a witness thereon, I could and would competently testify as to all the facts stated herein. Left Blank Intentionally I certify under penalty of perjury that the foregoing statements are true and correct. JAN 23 2026 Date STATE OF MINNESOTA COUNTY OF STEARNS Jacob Biard Signed and sworn to (or affirmed) before me on by Jacob Biard. JAN 23 2026 Julie A Kimmes Notary Public - Minnesota My Commission Expires 01/31/2030 Notary Public STATE OF OKLAHOMA Midland Credit Management, Inc, Plaintiff -vs- Jackson, Caleb, Defendant(s). AFFIDAVIT OF JACOB BIARD Jacob Biard, whose business address is 600 W. Saint Germain St Suite 200, St. Cloud, MN 56301-3616, certifies and says: 1. I am employed as a Legal Specialist and have access to pertinent account records for Midland Credit Management, Inc. ("Plaintiff" or "MCM"). I am a competent person over eighteen years of age, and make the statements herein based upon personal knowledge of those account records maintained by Plaintiff. Plaintiff is the current owner of, and was assigned all the rights, title and interest to Defendant's COMENITY CAPITAL BANK/PETLAND account XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX3953 (MCM Number 330117057) (hereinafter "the Account"). 2. I have access to and have reviewed the electronic records pertaining to the Account maintained by MCM and am authorized to make this affidavit on MCM's behalf. The electronic records reviewed consist of (i) data and records acquired from the seller or assignor when MCM purchased or was assigned the Account, which were incorporated into MCM's business records upon purchase or assignment, and (ii) data and records generated by MCM in connection with servicing the Account since the date the Account was purchased by or was assigned to MCM. 3. I am familiar with and trained on the manner and method by which MCM creates and maintains its business records pertaining to the Account, which consist of (i) data and documents acquired from the seller or assignor, and (ii) subsequent collection and/or servicing activities by MCM. The records are acquired or created, and are kept in the regular course of MCM's business. It was in the regular course of MCM's business for a person with knowledge of the subsequent collection and/or servicing activities recorded, and a business duty to report, to make the record or data compilation, or to transmit information thereof to be included in such record, or for such information to be posted in MCM's records by a computer or similar digital means. In the regular course of MCM's business, the record or compilation of the subsequent collection activities is made at or near the time of the act or event by MCM as a regular practice. 4. MCM's records show that Defendant(s) owed a balance of $4,877.82 as of 2026-01-02. 5. On or about 2024-11-22, Midland Credit Management, Inc became the successor in interest to this Account. 6. MCM's records show that: 1) the Account was opened on 2022-08-26; 2) the last payment posted to the Account on 2024-03-11; and 3) the Account was charged off on 2024-10-31. 7. If called to testify as a witness thereon, I could and would competently testify as to all the facts stated herein. Left Blank Intentionally I certify under penalty of perjury that the foregoing statements are true and correct. JAN 23 2026 Date STATE OF MINNESOTA COUNTY OF STEARNS Jacob Biard Signed and sworn to (or affirmed) before me on JAN 23 2026 by Jacob Biard. Julie A Kimmes Notary Public - Minnesota By Commission Expires 01/31/2030 OK038 AFFIDAVIT OF JACOB BIARD - 3