Can I Be Sued For a Very Old Debt? by: Debtcollectionanswers.com.
Thanks for getting in touch.
Although you did not provide any information regarding your state of residence or the nature of the debt you are concerned about in your question, in general most if not all state statutes of limitation on past due debts expire before 20 years. Therefore, under most circumstances, a consumer who owes a debt that is 20 years or older cannot be sued for that money, although a debt collector can demand that the consumer pay the debt. However, under certain circumstances, there is no statute of limitations on federal tax debt and some states have no statute of limitations on state-owed taxes that are past due. Therefore, given that I do not know what state you live in or the nature of your debt, I strongly urge you to contact a consumer law attorney in your area who helps consumers resolve debt collection problems for a definitive answer to your question.
A word of warning! If a debt collector happens to contacts you about the debt and if in fact the statute of limitations on the debt has expired, it is very important that you not admit that you owe the money or agree to pay it or to set up a payment plan to get rid of the debt. If you do any of these things, you risk resetting the statute of limitations on the debt, which means it would be as though your debt is brand new. In that case, you could be sued for the money.
