Am I Responsible for the Debt My Spouse Had Prior to Our Marriage?

If you are going through a divorce, you might be wondering if you are responsible for the debt that your spouse had prior to your marriage? Typically, the answer is that you are not responsible for any pre-marital debt that your spouse had.

Any debt prior to a marriage is not considered as part of the “marital debt” and therefore is not your responsibility. However, in order to escape any reliability that such debt is not your debt, you need to show documentation which shows that the debt existed prior to the marriage. Furthermore, if the debt was a credit card debt, then you have to show that you did not add to that credit card debt after the marriage. If you did use that credit card or added to that credit card debt, then it might be difficult to show which debt is pre-marital and which credit card debt is post-marriage.

In many cases, one party may have had student loan debt prior to the marriage, in almost all cases, you will not be responsible for your spouse’s student loan debt that was incurred prior to the marriage.

Similarly, if your spouse had personal loans or automobile loans that existed prior to the marriage, and that still exist after the marriage, you should not be responsible for that debt.

Although, it is a good idea to have a pre-nuptial agreement that discusses each parties’ debt, it is not necessary to avoid paying for your spouse’s pre-marital debt.

In a divorce, there are many questions about debts and assets that will need to be answered. David Badanes, Esq. and the Badanes Law Office, P.C. can answer those questions for you. If you are seeking an attorney to represent you in your divorce, then contact David Badanes and the Badanes Law Office. If you live in Suffolk County or Nassau County, contact David Badanes and the Badanes Law Office, P.C. today at 631-239-1702, email at david@dbnylaw.com or visit us on Facebook to get important legal news, tips and articles: www.facebook.com/BadanesLawOffice.