Statute of limitations for spousal support

What is the name of your state? Virginia

Fifteen years ago my wife's ex-husband abandoned her and her three children after attempting to molest her 13 year old daughter. He was convicted, ordered in to counseling, and ordered to pay spousal support for a period of five years.

He immediately left the state [to Oklahoma] without permission of the court. He has never payed any of the spousal support, and the local court refused to order his return. Is it still possible to get that money, or is there a statute of limitations on such claims ?

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally posted by katchmcg
What is the name of your state? Virginia

Fifteen years ago my wife's ex-husband abandoned her and her three children after attempting to molest her 13 year old daughter. He was convicted, ordered in to counseling, and ordered to pay spousal support for a period of five years.

He immediately left the state [to Oklahoma] without permission of the court. He has never payed any of the spousal support, and the local court refused to order his return. Is it still possible to get that money, or is there a statute of limitations on such claims ?

My response:

Assuming, for the moment, that the statute of limitations is not a problem, what has changed to make you and your wife think the ex-husband is going to pay now?

IAAL

We have no reason to think he wants to pay or will pay willingly. But if he still has the liability, then we can perhaps get a judgement against him through a Warrant in Debt perhaps. That might give us some leverage to force a payment, such as a lien against property or a wage garnishment [if those options are available]. The worst case scenerio is that we could write off the amount as a bad debt as a tax deduction.