How can I recover money owed to me by my ex-boyfriend in Texas?

[JulietRose]

What is the name of your state? Texas
Hi there. I really hope you can help me.
My ex boyfriend lives in Texas, born and bred. I am English and live in England. We met online initially, 2 years ago. After a few months we decided to meet. He didn't have a passport at the time so it was agreed I would travel to him. It went so well, that I travelled over 8 more times during the course of the following 18 months, whilst helping him secure a passport, as well as all the rest of his life admin.
I paid upfront for all the cost of all travel over to see him, and all expenses occurred whilst I was visiting. This included flights, hotels, food, car hire. In addition there were presents and costs of entertaining his children when I visited. The verbal agreement and also over text is that this would be an equally shared cost, that he would reimburse me for, as he got paid. I also paid for medical bills, dental bill, prescriptions, consultant appointments, clothes and his passport, all of which he agreed he would pay me back in full for.
The debt I am now in on credit cards due to these expenses is in excess of $10,000, and that does not include the monthly interest I have to pay. He has paid me the odd $100 here, $200 there, but nothing substantial that even begins to cover the cost of the interest let alone the actual amount owed to me.
Anyway, I have since found out that he has been cheating on me, and keeping his ex-girlfriend in his life (so I guess not so ex), so I ended it. I have texts saying he will not leave the burden of this debt with me and he will honour his share. That was 5 months ago and I have received approximately $600, which still doesn't even cover the interest.
I have finally managed to get him to put his agreement to repay me his share of the costs in an email, but no figure as I am still trying to add up the final bill.
He is currently awaiting a payout on an insurance claim in which he was in a road traffic accident that was not his fault. It looks like he could secure around $15,000 from this.
Sorry for the long winded message, but my question is, how can I recover this money he owes me? Do I even stand a chance bearing in mind I live in England? If so, can I put a lien against the payout?
I need to find a solution because I am a single mum, trying to support my daughter through uni, pay a mortgage, and the monthly repayment on this debt which is crippling me. I may need to sell my house and I really don't want to do that. Any help you can offer would be so gratefully received!
Thank you so much for reading!

 

[adjusterjack]

Reality check. Don't count on ever seeing any real money from this deadbeat who preys on foolish foreign women.

That you borrowed money to incur these expenses is entirely on you. He doesn't owe you anything for the interest you pay.

You will have to sue him in Texas and, eventually, incur the expense of going to Texas to testify. That expense is not compensable.

The small claims limit in Texas is $10,000. Since it appears that his agreement was to cover half your expenses, you at least have less formal litigation than regular court and you can do it without a lawyer.

Unfortunately, even if you manage to win a judgment, Texas prohibits wage garnishment for most debts.

No, you cannot put a lien on his injury settlement. It would have to be voluntary on his part and my prediction is that it's not going to happen.

 

[JulietRose]

Reality check. Don't count on ever seeing any real money from this deadbeat who preys on foolish foreign women.

That you borrowed money to incur these expenses is entirely on you. He doesn't owe you anything for the interest you pay.

You will have to sue him in Texas and, eventually, incur the expense of going to Texas to testify. That expense is not compensable.

The small claims limit in Texas is $10,000. Since it appears that his agreement was to cover half your expenses, you at least have less formal litigation than regular court and you can do it without a lawyer.

Unfortunately, even if you manage to win a judgment, Texas prohibits wage garnishment for most debts.

No, you cannot put a lien on his injury settlement. It would have to be voluntary on his part and my prediction is that it's not going to happen.

Hi, thank you for your response and the 'tough love' reality check. You are right, he is a deadbeat, however I have since found out that it is not just us 'foreign women' he has fooled, but home grown American women too. As for foolish...no, trusting...yes. Foolish indicates that this was in part my fault, and I can assure you I take no part of blame in his deception and downright assholeness!

So in short, the fact he knew and was encouraging of me using my credit cards to pay these expenses, still exonerates him from the interest?
Are you able to advise how I can proceed through small claims without a lawyer? And will the email from him be evidence enough?

Many thanks.

 

[TheGeekess]

Some things you have to leave up to karma.
https://guides.sll.texas.gov/small-claims

 

[adjusterjack]

will the email from him be evidence enough?

It's evidence.

Whether it's enough is up to the judge.

As for foolish...no, trusting...yes. Foolish indicates that this was in part my fault, and I can assure you I take no part of blame in his deception and downright assholeness!

Um, an online romance with somebody on another continent, that you spend over $10,000 on, and you don't think that was foolish?

Denial is not just a river in Egypt.

smh.

 

[HighwayMan]

Um, an online romance...

Oh, is THAT what you call it?

 

[HighwayMan]

Are you able to advise how I can proceed through small claims without a lawyer?

You'll have to come to Texas and file your lawsuit. This will undoubtedly cost more thousands of dollars in travel expenses.

In the end, I can almost guarantee that you will not be able to collect a dime from him even if you win your case.

 

[Shadowbunny]

In the end, I can almost guarantee that you will not be able to collect a dime from him even if you win your case.

The above is really, really important. Because even if you win, it's up to you to collect.

 

[NeilTheCop]

Face it luv; you got scammed.