It was my understanding that in Pennsylvania, we could only collect 3 years or 36 months of back dues if there was never a lien or judgment in place?

I am sorry but you do not post enough information in order to enable me to frame an intelligent answer. What are you trying to collect? Why do you believe that you can only recover 3 years' worth of funds? The statute of limitations in Pennsylvania (since you are alleging money of some kind is owed) is 4 or 6 years for contract-type situations (as opposed to negligence). So I do not understand why this would be 36 months/3 years. There is no 3 year statute of limitations set forth in the judicial code, so unless its somewhere else, its unclear what kind of dues you are seeking to collect. There are a few types of liens that can be imposed pre-judgment - examples would be liens of materialmen (such as people who improve your property) or car mechanics. Some property owners' associations can impose liens if the HOA dues are not paid. These types of liens have to be followed up by litigation of some type. If this action is not something where a pre-judment lien would be authorized then a lien cannot exist. However, the lack of a lien should not determine how far back you can seek recovery.