Hi all. My ex-husband has made our divorce here in Texas difficult to say the least. Over the course of this year, he filed several frivolous lawsuits against me and has lost them all. I want to serve him with a writ of execution to collect my lawyer’s fees for both divorce and civil attorneys. He was ordered to pay my divorce attorney fees in July and has not paid her yet, so I doubt he will pay for the civil attorney’s fees either. I also need my divorce attorney to file a motion to enforce our divorce decree because he decided to liquidate his 401K and transfer the RSUs I was awarded to his new wife. The problem is, I’m not certain where he resides now. I believe he is in California but he could be using a fake address for the car lease I co-signed for him. Can I call the leasing company to verify the address? Will I have to use a private investigator? We are not on speaking terms at all, so asking him directly would likely be unsuccessful.
NAL - My ex continues using a joint account of ours (he is funneling money he’s hiding from his current wife through there). I have kept quiet (per my lawyer) since legally, if I ever need it, I can access the money in that account.
I mention this because I’m not breaking any laws by using a joint account he continues to use to monitor that information. What you need to do is look at what accounts you have that both of you are on, where you can get a portal set up to access the address information on file for those accounts. You can also check your credit reports, as any joint accounts may list his addresses on your reports.
Start with these legal methods first to see what you can find out.
Did the leasing company have GPS tracking installed on the car? Some rental and leasing companies do this to find the vehicles if not returned.
Noah said:
Did the leasing company have GPS tracking installed on the car? Some rental and leasing companies do this to find the vehicles if not returned.
I can definitely ask! Thank you.
Before hiring a PI, I recommend a good ol’ deep dive on the internet. If you know the new wife’s name, you may be able to get the address a lot easier than you think. I’ve literally found someone’s name and address using just a nickname and a snap screen name.
@Sterling
I found someone’s wife using Pinterest. Be creative.
@Sterling
I looked up the IP address in the header of the last email I received from his new wife, which was a dismissal of her own lawsuit against me, and the location appeared to be in Kansas. Her lawsuit was filed in Washington state. We both work in cybersecurity, so I believe he’s probably using a VPN. The only real lead I have is an apartment at the address he listed for the car leasing company, which I would likely need a subpoena to verify if he resides there.
@San
If your name is on the loan and the servicer has an online portal, you could call and have them set up a login for you. Co-signers should be able to each have their own login, where you can see address information regarding the reported location of the vehicle.
@San
No socials for either? Sometimes friends tag them and give clues. Also, if the car you co-signed has an app, you might see where it’s parked. Or use the car’s VIN to look up registration information.
@Kelley
He has a Twitter, no Facebook, and his IG is private. I can see the mailing address listed in the online portal. I’m not sure how to go about requesting the registration information as I’m in Texas and he’s likely in California.
@San
You can do it online through the CA DMV.
File everything. File contempt for not paying what a judge already ordered him to pay. File contempt for liquidating the 401K. File contempt for every violation and sue for attorney’s fees for frivolous lawsuits. You may never see a dime, but the judgments may stack up to an arrest warrant if the judge is so inclined. He stole the 401K from you.
Good Luck
Not your lawyer, not legal advice. You have attorneys on each of these matters, have you broached the topic with them?
My initial thoughts would be some kind of motion for discovery in aid of execution, served or substituted service on his last address on file. This tees up a contempt motion for non-compliance, but your attorneys will know more about your specific facts and local rules.
@Broderick
My attorneys are not very responsive. I let them know he appears to have left the state, and I confirmed he no longer resides at the address he was listing in the paperwork.
San said:
@Broderick
My attorneys are not very responsive. I let them know he appears to have left the state, and I confirmed he no longer resides at the address he was listing in the paperwork.
Do you have the VIN and license plate for the car? It must be registered in some state or insured. Since you co-signed, I would lean on the lessor to help without incurring discovery fees.
@Brook
I have the VIN of the car, not the license plate number. I will try to get as much information from the leasing company as possible. Thank you!