How can Alex Jones avoid paying the money he owes?

Question

Alex Jones owes more than $1 billion dollars from the court cases he has lost. As far as I know, he has yet to pay a cent. From a legal perspective, how can he avoid paying any money at all for so long?

Answer 1

There are various reasons why an actual payment from a losing defendant may be delayed or go unpaid, including:

• orders to pay can be stayed (suspended) while being appealed, although the court will typically require the defendant to pay the money into court to be held in trust;
• the person owing can simply decline to pay (through a variety of avoidance tactics), leaving it to the plaintiff(s)/creditor(s) to commence enforcement actions like garnishment or seizure;
• a payment plan may have been agreed to, including a delay in the initial payment;
• the person owing might not have the funds — this circumstance would transition into bankruptcy proceedings with the successful plaintiffs among the creditors (I believe this is what's going on with Mr. Jones);
• the debt "dies with the debtor" — it will be payable out of the estate but only to the extent possible and possibly limited because of debts also owed to other creditors.