questions & answers

Question: Ex has not paid credit card debt, child support, or ,child medical Bill's per decree. He moved out of state and is refusing to provide current contact information. How can I get decree enforced without knowing current address and how long do I have to enforce.

Answer: This is a tough situation.  First, you need to be aware that the divorce court's division of debts is enforceable between you and your ex, but is not enforceable between you and your creditors.  Most debts incurred during marriage are community debts.  For example:  you and your ex may have incurred a community credit card debt while married.  Even if the family court judge orders your ex to pay that credit card debt,  the credit card company can still collect from either you or your ex because it is not bound by the court order.  If you end up paying the debt, your only recourse is to sue your ex to recover the money.  The same is true of medical bills.  You can ask the Arizona Department of Economic Security to help with child support collection.  Go to: https://des.az.gov/services/child-and-family/child-support.  DES may have some resources to track him down.  Not knowing his current location greatly complicates the situation.  Have you kept track of him on social media to get a clue as to his location? You always have the option of hiring a skip tracer or private detective to help locate him.  There are also some online services that you can use to locate him. If your ex is the type of guy who usually works for a corporation and earns a salary, it is easier to track him and enforce support than if he works at a local garage or changes jobs frequently.