Ask any divorce attorney and they can tell you that some issues involving a divorce can drag on for years when one or both parties refuse to be cooperative.
However, a 74-year-old California woman may have set the record for post-divorce tenacity when she finally won a $153,000 award for past-due child support (plus interest) 50 years after her divorce was over.
After her divorce, her ex-husband made exactly one child support payment for their three children — and the check he sent bounced. He then moved to Canada and never made any more payments. He was supposed to pay $210 each month for 30 months, then $160 each month until the youngest child turned 21 years of age. Since he was in Canada, there wasn’t much else for his ex-wife to do except struggle along on her own to raise her daughters.
However, the woman’s ex-husband recently returned to the United States and located in Oregon…at which point things began to get interesting. The California woman realized that there was no statute of limitations on child support obligations in that state and decided to seek enforcement now that her ex-spouse was back in the states.
The ex-couple have reportedly worked out an agreement for the past-due amount and the ex-husband paid up with no hard feelings.
While not every state has an unlimited statute of limitations on child support, this is a remarkable story that highlights California’s laws and should be encouraging to others who are owed support. It’s always worth your while to find out how a child support attorney can help you with your case if you’re having trouble collecting what you are due.