Legal Question in Family Law in Texas
I have a question pertaining to the enforcement of a divorce decree. How likely is it to receive payment from a former spouse who hasn�t paid her end of the bills in the decree? Even if a judge orders it, is it likely I would ever see the money?
When we agree on the divorce, I was ordered to pay my ex-wife a small portion of the equity of the house. She was allowed to stay in the house through the end of the school year as long as she paid some bills and maintained the house. I sent her an email (which I later hand-delivered with a witness) outlining the bills, account numbers, contact phone numbers, etc. It was clear and reminded her of the obligations. Since the divorce, she didn't pay all of the bills. When I got back the house, it was trashed and there was writing on most of the walls. The cost to clean, refurbish, and repaint the cost was about $1,500 plus about 200 hours of labor. I did it all myself last summer. I even did it while I had the care of our kids, which she abandoned for most of the summer. I sent her certified letters asking her to pay the bills and the cost of the repairs to the house. I ended up selling the house to move close to the kids.
I sent her at least three certified letters saying that per the decree, I had a lien to pay her what I owed her. I outlined what she owed me and asked her to pay me back. Yes, I was 5 months late, but I was late because she didn�t pay the bills and because the house was not in a good selling condition. I have met my end of the bargain. Instead of paying me what she owed me, she used the money I paid her to buy a new car.
Is it worth going back to court to get the $4,000 she owes me and maybe $5,000 in damages to the house (that was the estimate I was given for the refurbishes, but I saved considerable money doing it myself).
Here is the deal. I am currently working on a custody modification. We have two kids with special needs. They were both diagnosed post-divorce and she hasn�t done anything about them. I am the one that has pushed for the services at their school. I am the one going to all the school meetings. I am even the one doing most of their homework (about 70%, despite only having them for 2 hours on homework nights). I just don�t know if it will be worth spending thousands on enforcing the money she owes me when the kids are more important. I have finite funds. Even though I have the kids 43% of the night on paper, more like 55% in reality, I still pay her near full child support and do not get to deduct the kids. Thus, I have a negative cash flow each month. Getting a second job is not feasible as I have the kids 3 nights out of 7 nights in the week. I also wouldn�t be able to help them with their homework, which their Mother neglects to do.
Would you muddy the waters of the custody modification with the money implications, or would you let the money go and try to get the kids more time?
2 Answers from Attorneys
First, you can only count on what you are out of pocket in fixing the trashed house as damages.The estimate won't help you get the value of your labor back. If you sold the house, it could be argued that you got the fruits of your labors back as part of the purchase price. Should you file suit to enforce payment of the bills, she can file bankruptcy and discharge the judgment. (Unfortunately, child support is not dischargable in bankruptcy.)
A better result would be to modify the decree so that you are the managing conservator, and have the court order her to pay child support. You may be able to bring up the money in the same action.
You need to talk to an attorney in your area that has experience is difficult cases like yours.
It appears that you might be in the San Antonio area. I'd call Attorney Engelke and Attorney Clint Lawson. I've known Clint for years -- he used to live in Houston but several years ago he moved to San Antonio.
Unfortunately, the situation you describe happens frequently. Good luck!
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