The first thing to do when you’re served with a summons and complaint is to look at the time that you have to respond to it. Usually, the summons indicates that you have 20 days to respond. Those are usually calendar days, not business days. So, it’s very important to pay attention to that deadline. Once you determine how much time you have to respond, then it’s important to contact an attorney so that the attorney can go over the details of the petition, or complaint with you, and help you determine how to best respond.