Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: property lien

There is a 10 year statute of limitation on a judgment unless the judgment was renewed timely. We can help you file the peitiont to remove the judgment and handle cases throughout California.

Re: property lien

To start off, I'm not sure whether this is a judgment lien resulting from the court action or whether it's another kind of lien. The confusion arises because you say your wife was sued, failed to appear, but yet the court ruled in her favor. "Her" could mean the ex-wife OR the business partner.

Ordinary liens are not enforceable beyond the time within which suit may be brought on the underlying obligation. For written contracts, this would be four years.

In the more likely case that this is a judgment lien, it would usually expire after 10 years. However, be cautioned that liens can be extended or renewed. The provisions covering judgment liens are somewhat numerous and complex (see Code of Civil Procedure Part 2, Title 9, "Enforcement of Judgments").

If your facts are correct, your ex-wife should have disclosed this debt as part of your separation, and probably would have been made solely liable by judicial decree. It's probably too late to go after her now.

It's also possible that the lien was invalid from the outset or was enforceable only against your now ex-wife's interest in the home. If you end up having to hire a lawyer, ask him/her to look at that possibility.

Most professional lenders know enough about the law of judgment liens to know which are a problem and which are not, or they have access to legal advice when needed. Therefore, whether the lien is a problem to the priority of a refinance loan and needs to be expunged or declared expired by a court may depend upon the sophistication of your lender. In any case, that's where the discussion begins, in my opinion.

Re: property lien

You will have to quiet title via a court action. I can help you in this area -- my area of specialty. You may contact me.