Under the Oklahoma law a foreign judgment is limited to one year. In West Virginia a foreign judgment against a person who has been a resident of the State for ten years is barred.
A similar clause to the following, taken from the laws of the State of Washington, is incorporated in the acts of nearly all States, and may be considered as a general rule:
"In an action brought to recover a balance due upon a mutual, open and current account, where there have been reciprocal demands, the cause of action shall be deemed to have accrued from the time of the last item of the account proved on either side, but when more than one year shall have intervened between any of a series of items, they are not to be deemed such an account."
Thus, if you do practice for a person, and a year elapses and you again attend him, you cannot combine the two as one account, and enforce collection by law.
CHAPTER VII
EXEMPTION LAWS.
Before starting a suit to collect money due you, carefully read up on the exemption laws of your State. After carefully considering the matter you will find that a judgment, if obtained, will avail you nothing, should the debtor elect to take advantage of the exemption allowed him by law.
Some States are very liberal in the amount of property a man may hold which is exempt from execution on a judgment for indebtedness. Take for instance, the State of North Dakota, where the head of a family may hold a homestead and personal property to the value of $6,450, and in case the head of the family should die, and was insured, the widow and children could hold an additional $5,000 of life insurance money, making a total exemption of $11,450.
Delaware is the only State that has made a special provision for physicians in any manner. Here the statutes provide that a physician's bill shall be a preferred claim for services in the last illness of the patient.