What are my rights for payment from my ex-boyfriend on a boat purchase and shopping expeneses for items he took with him when he left?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What are my rights for payment from my ex-boyfriend on a boat purchase and shopping expeneses for items he took with him when he left?
My boyfriend moved in on 3/2/11, and moved out and left me on 4/13/11. We purchased a boat for $7000 on my credit card on 3/2/11. We are both on the sale contract and title. I can’t afford to keep the boat on my own, want to sell it. He said I can’t unless he signs and won’t help me make payments on it. He also ran my credit cards up approx $3,000 in fishing equipment/rods/reels/lures, all which he took with him and won’t pay me back for them. During the time he was here I paid for everything and he insisted he would eventually help make payments. I am stuck with over 10k in debt.
Asked on April 19, 2011 under Bankruptcy Law, Pennsylvania
Answers:
MD, Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
Unfortunately, for that month you lived together, the court could consider this not a loan and not a purchase for which he considers or you consider a loan, but rather a gift. If you used your credit card for the fishing equipment and accessories, the court could consider and he may use as his affirmative defense that it was a gift from you. Take whatever evidence you have that is to the contrary (to prove it was a loan or he was simply your credit card and intended on paying you back). File this with any court lawsuit as part of your evidence and you should be able to obtain a judgment from him. Once you obtain a judgment, you can garnish his wages, put a lien on property he owes and even freeze his bank account. As to the boat, you might be stuck unless you can get a court order to force him to sign over the property to you or sign off to refinance in only your name. If you are a joint owner, you might be able to wait a sufficient amount of time, consider it abandoned property for him and then sell it. Make sure you go over the legal ramifications because if you cannot sell it and transfer title in your state without both signatures (i.e., a cloud on title remains), you may need to obtain a court order.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.