Thank you for joining me. My name is LaSheena Williams, and I am a Maryland family law attorney. My firm helps our clients take control of out-of-control domestic situations. Today we will be discussing creative enforcement solutions.
Crawford Credits
If you and your spouse own a home and you move out of the home, but you continue to make payments on the mortgage you may be entitled to Crawford Credits. Crawford Credits is an amount of money that a person is entitled to when they move out of a home, but they are still making payments on that property. You may be entitled to that especially since you have moved out of the home and even if your spouse is or is not paying their share, you’re still not staying in that home, and you may be entitled to recouping the costs and fees you’ve been paying while out of the home.
Recoupments
Regardless of whether you live in that home after you get divorced or you have moved out of the home. If you pay any share of expenses to maintain that property or to have that property prepared for sale, you may be entitled to recoup the expenses you’ve paid for to make sure that property is maintained and that property is sold. It’s important to know that you have that option so that you can request payment at the time of settlement for your expenses.
Force a Sale
If you and your spouse agree to sell your home or if the court orders that the house has to be sold and they’re refusing to actually comply with that, whether they are keeping the house in a state that is not appropriate for sale, whether they refuse to agree on a realtor, whether they are making it so that certain repairs aren’t made on the property you can request that the property be sold by the court. You can file a petition for sale in lieu of partition and get the property sold so that you can move on. If you file a petition a trustee will be appointed and that trustee will be empowered with the authority to make any decisions necessary to affect the sale of that property.
Liens
Another creative option for enforcing a court order is to get a lien. For example, if you have file for divorce or even for custody or other issues and you were awarded attorney’s fees, but your spouse has failed to comply with paying the fees, you can seek to have those fees injured as a judgment against your spouse and that judgment can be entered as a lien on your property. What that means is, that lien will be paid prior to any division of net profits on that home. So, if you have a $22,000 attorney’s fee award, that $22,000 attorney’s fee award will be paid out to you or whoever you have appointed to receive that fee before the division of the net profits go to you and your spouse.
If you have any questions about this or any other Creative Solutions to enforcement during a divorce or custody matter, contact the Law Office of LaSheena M. Williams at (301) 778 – 9950 or leave an online request for a consultation.
