SOL of student loans

My husband co-signed on a loan for his ex-wife in April of 2003, they divorced in 2005, and each party was determined responsible for their own debts in the divorce decree. We recently received a letter of nonpayment, the only such notice we've had that there was a problem with the loan. It states that the original loan was for $5,000, the outstanding principal is $2,012.45, there is a past-due amount of $155.56 and the total amount due is $246.95. It states she last made a payment in July of this year. They're demanding the loan be paid in full, a total of $2,173.12.

I clicked on the link in your profile, SoapLady, and the statute of limitations in Utah is 6 years for a promissory note, and 8 years on judgments. However, I'm unclear about what this means:

"Usually the SOL time limit lies between 3-10 years after the moment you signs up a credit contract or the last activity date written on your credit report."

So does that mean the date the loan contract was signed (which was over 8 years ago now), or the last time my husband paid on the loan (which was never), or the last time his ex-wife paid on the loan?

The monthly payments were only $31.39 a month, and we never received any notification before now that the loan was about to go into default.

What are our options at this point?

Thank you so much for your help!

~Rose

For student loans, SOL is calculated from the date of default....when you borrowed it is irrelevent. It sounds like it just recently defaulted.

Private student loans also will sue before the SOL runs out.

FYI....divorce decrees are unenforceable which means your husband is still legally responsible for the loan.

So what are our options at this point, besides call and beg for mercy?

It says in the divorce decree that my husband was released from being a cosigner- how is that unenforceable? Why weren't we notified before now that the loan was not being paid?

Will they garnish his wages wages, her wages first, or just ours? Our assets (house, both cars, etc) are in my name. Can a lien be taken out on them?

~Rose

The only way for you enforce the divorce decree is to haul the ex back into family court. A divorce decree "assigns" responsiblity for the the debt but they cannot force a lender to comply meaning that the both parties are still responsible and both parties can be sued.

Begging for mercy on a private loan is futile. Once default, the entire balance is accelerated and the lender will work to enforce the prom note agreement for balance in full on demand in the case of default. They "may" let you make payments but expect to be sued as well, which is their legal right. With a judgment, they will lien property, garnish wages and freeze bank accounts of both parties.

We're already in family court over custody issues, so I guess we can add this to the list...

What I'm asking is, can they garnish MY wages, as his current wife, or put a lien against MY property? On paper this is my house, my cars, etc.

~Rose

No, they cannot garnish anyone who was not a signor on the prom note.
As long as he is not on the house, they cannot touch it.

Even if family court orders her to pay, the lender can still pursue your spouse.

So if I'm understanding you correctly, we get a court judgment against her that orders her to pay according to the original divorce decree, the lender can pursue us and get their own court order superseding that one?

~Rose

Yup....the court can demand she pay and if she doesn't, hold her in contempt. In order to get the cosignor removed, she would have had to pay off the loan and refi it thru conventional means. However family court cannot void the original contract since they were not party to it.