California Family Code 291 – (a) A money judgment or judgment for possession or sale of …
(a) A money judgment or judgment for possession or sale of property that is made or entered under this code, including a judgment for child, family, or spousal support, is enforceable until paid in full or otherwise satisfied.
(b) A judgment described in this section is exempt from any requirement that a judgment be renewed. Failure to renew a judgment described in this section has no effect on the enforceability of the judgment.
Terms Used In California Family Code 291
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- order: include a decree, as appropriate under the circumstances. See California Family Code 100
- Property: includes real and personal property and any interest therein. See California Family Code 113
- Spousal support: means support of the spouse of the obligor. See California Family Code 142
- State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, or a commonwealth, territory, or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See California Family Code 145
- Support: refers to a support obligation owing on behalf of a child, spouse, or family, or an amount owing pursuant to Section 17402. See California Family Code 150
(c) A judgment described in this section may be renewed pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 683.110) of Chapter 3 of Division 1 of Title 9 of Part 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure. An application for renewal of a judgment described in this section, whether or not payable in installments, may be filed:
(1) If the judgment has not previously been renewed as to past due amounts, at any time.
(2) If the judgment has previously been renewed, the amount of the judgment as previously renewed and any past due amount that became due and payable after the previous renewal may be renewed at any time after a period of at least five years has elapsed from the time the judgment was previously renewed.
(d) In an action to enforce a judgment for child, family, or spousal support, the defendant may raise, and the court may consider, the defense of laches only with respect to any portion of the judgment that is owed to the state.
(e) Nothing in this section supersedes the law governing enforcement of a judgment after the death of the judgment creditor or judgment debtor.
(f) On or before January 1, 2008, the Judicial Council shall develop self-help materials that include: (1) a description of the remedies available for enforcement of a judgment under this code, and (2) practical advice on how to avoid disputes relating to the enforcement of a support obligation. The self-help materials shall be made available to the public through the Judicial Council self-help Internet Web site.
(g) As used in this section, “judgment” includes an order.
(Amended by Stats. 2007, Ch. 130, Sec. 87. Effective January 1, 2008.)