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  1. #1
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    Mar 2014
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    Default Can You Go Back to Court After Divorce Was Final

    My question involves a marriage in the state of: New Mexico

    I got divorced last year, my ex spouse received the car in the divorce like we agreed on. We purchased the car together while we were still married so my name is still on the loan. I have tired to ask him to refinance the car since he is starting to show he is not being responsible financially. I have been getting calls from the bank we finaced with saying he is almost 2 months behind and they plan to repossess the car in April. I have been asking him why he hasn't been paying for it or attempted to call the bank back to work out a payment plan. He has yet to reregister the car in his own name, also letting the registration expire. Since he is showing he can't handle taking care of the car finacially can I take him back to court to get the car back. He is also military, an I have recently learned a bill was passed saying creditors can not contact his chain of command. I have called my divorce attorney to ask what can I do, but he has no idea and has offered little advice. Since the divorce i have been working building my credit because he basbasically destroyed it while we were seperated and i have just paid off that debt. He has been delinquent on the car 4 times in the past along with being late with child support payments. I would like to know if there is a way to take him back to court to get the car back.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
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    38,867

    Default Re: Can You Go Back to Court After Divorce Was Final

    you can go back to court to have the terms of the order enforced. If the other party does not comply with the terms of the order, you can seek alternate means to resolve the matter so, what did the order say specifically about the car? was he ordered to refinance it or otherwise take action so as to remove you from the title and release you from the liability of the loan?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2014
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    2

    Default Re: Can You Go Back to Court After Divorce Was Final

    It says "respondent shall recieve the following community debt subject to the indebtedness and shall hold petitioner harmless for the following debt" and it has the car listed.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
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    38,867

    Default Re: Can You Go Back to Court After Divorce Was Final

    you are the petitioner, correct?


    that means he has to ensure you are not dunned for the loan or are not damaged by anything such as allowing the loan to become delinquent.

    so, he has violated that section of the order. You can seek the courts assistance in a remedy. I do not know if the court will award you the car since the initial order is simply for him to pay for it. They may just order him to comply with the order. If he further fails to comply, then they may allow for some alternate action.

    the problem with simply allowing you to take the car is it was part of the "total package" if the order. It could upset some other part of the order as far as division of assets and debts go.

    and it does not say he has to refinance the debt nor remove your name from the title. All it says is he is responsible for the debt and he has to ensure you are not damaged by some action regarding the debt.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
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    Somewhere near Canada
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    35,894

    Default Re: Can You Go Back to Court After Divorce Was Final

    OP is your husband active duty or deployed?

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
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    118

    Default Re: Can You Go Back to Court After Divorce Was Final

    Quote Quoting EricaJ
    View Post
    My question involves a marriage in the state of: New Mexico

    I got divorced last year, my ex spouse received the car in the divorce like we agreed on. We purchased the car together while we were still married so my name is still on the loan. I have tired to ask him to refinance the car since he is starting to show he is not being responsible financially. I have been getting calls from the bank we finaced with saying he is almost 2 months behind and they plan to repossess the car in April. I have been asking him why he hasn't been paying for it or attempted to call the bank back to work out a payment plan. He has yet to reregister the car in his own name, also letting the registration expire. Since he is showing he can't handle taking care of the car finacially can I take him back to court to get the car back. He is also military, an I have recently learned a bill was passed saying creditors can not contact his chain of command. I have called my divorce attorney to ask what can I do, but he has no idea and has offered little advice. Since the divorce i have been working building my credit because he basbasically destroyed it while we were seperated and i have just paid off that debt. He has been delinquent on the car 4 times in the past along with being late with child support payments. I would like to know if there is a way to take him back to court to get the car back.
    Can you take him back to court to get the car back? No!

    So, if you are wondering why your divorce lawyer "has no idea" it is simply because there isn't one.

    The only way a family court can reopen a closed case to revisit the distribution of marital property is upon a showing that the distribution was induced by fraud practiced upon the court and resulted in distribution in favor of the person party the committed the fraud. It is known in legal parlance as "intrinsic fraud".

    It always easy to second guess an attorney after the fact, but it is a common practice in the distribution of marital assets that are subject to liens, such as the lender's lien on the car, to assign both the asset and the debt.

    Here it might have been anticipated that the husband would allow the car loan to go into default, and to have insisted that the car be sold in order to retire the debt, but that is just second guessing. Plus you were probably upside down on the vehicle making a sale impractical.

    Someone in here suggested that if the court specifically ordered the ex to make the loan payments his failure might be considered and treated as being in contempt. Giving you the option of reopening the case to enforce that order.

    But I'm skeptical that the court would have such jurisdiction.

    The real problem here is that you were married to a deadbeat loser and the courts can't do much about that.

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