should I sue?

[shi24]

My ex-boyfriend and I broke up about 10 months ago. We lived together for 9 months and he owes me approximately $3,500 for rent and other bills that I paid for him. (I do have a list of everything I paid for, when I paid it, canceled check numbers, copies of bills, etc) He promised to pay me back and for the past 10 months he's been saying he'll pay it, but so far I haven't seen a penny. (He also apparently owes another ex money as well, but I guess that's irrelevant) Should I sue him for the money? To complicate matters even more, right now we both live in Missouri, but I've moving to California in less than a week and there has been talk (I don't know if it is true or not) of him moving out of the country (though it wouldn't be for months). Can I still sue him if I move to a different state? Also, I have one more question...while we were together, he bought a new car and I cosigned on his financing agreement. I talked to the dealer and the financing department and they've told me there was nothing I could do to get out of the contract. Is there anything I can do about that? And if he does move to another country or skips town, is there anything I can do? Thanks!!

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

My response:

If you move before you sue him, you can kiss your judgment good-bye. You can only sue him in the State where the agreements occurred. California has no jurisdiction to hear your complaints, and California can't make him come to this State to defend. Only Missouri can do that. If you're moving to California in less than a week, there's no time to sue him. Your case wouldn't be heard until long after you're gone. You'd need 4 to 8 weeks lead time, and that's if you file on Monday.

His owing another girlfriend is relevant insofar as you're concerned; but not to a court. It goes to his "state of mind" and his "track record". Enough said.

The dealer financing department is correct. You can't get out of the auto contract. Once he moves, or fails to make his payments, the loan company is going to look to you for payments. If you don't pay (even though you don't have the car), your credit will greatly suffer. Never co-sign a loan . . . even for family members.

You can't stop him from moving. We'll see you in California next week !!

Regards from Los Angeles,

IAAL