D.B.
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As I'm encouraged by friends to get my "ducks in a row" I am faced with a lot of questions about divorce in PA. I have been married for 6.5 years and my question is about debt.
My husband is in debt up to his eyeballs for his business and for his personal hobbies (all legal). Only 2 or 3 of the credit cards that are run up to their limits have both of our names on them as well as our mortgage and home equity loan. He probably has 10 others with just his name that are up to their limits or close to them that he uses for work and play.
Am I going to be held responsible for his credit card debt as well or just for the cards my name is on?
Is there any good advice you can give me as I move forward in this direction? I have a special needs son and I need to make sure everything is done very carefully and methodically so that we are in the best possible position when all of this is said and done.
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Agreed you need to talk to a lawyer. Here is a thought, if you are currently working.... a lot of companies offer Employee Assistance Programs (EAP), so if you are working, find out if you have one. Sometimes its called a Work Life Balance program. It is often attached to a Long Term Disability (LTD) policy. They often offer a free consultation with an attorney, and then reduced fees if you end up retaining that attorney. Good luck.
there are different types of "child custody."
So know that and research it.
Here are some links on it:
http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/types-of-child-cus...
http://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/types-of-ch...
http://singleparents.about.com/od/legalissues/a/typesofcu...
http://divorcesupport.about.com/od/maritalproblems/p/chil...
Get an Attorney. An aggressive one.
Get an Financial consultant. Not one that will rip you off.
Talk to your bank.
Document everything. For yourself & your child's protection. You don't have to tell him.
We had a nightmare tax situation years ago regarding my husband's job-nutshell: Hollywood entertainment accountant voodoo. The tax lien was in my name too for filing jointly as was the credit card debt resulting from paying tax relief lawyers and charging living expenses while sending massive payments to IRS.
Sounds like you guys may need to file bankruptcy and have the debts discharged so you can walk away after that if the joint credit card balances are too much for you to handle on your own after divorce. I'm thinking you would only be equally responsible for things in your name not cards that are only his, but you both need to file to lose mutual debts.
If you can earn enough after divorce to pay down the cards you share with him (because he probably won't help) you can spare yourself the bankruptcy, but if not, you need to file so you can walk away debt free.
If you have responsible spending habits, you can re-build credit of your own going forward after bankruptcy, and at least your money will be spent on the present and future instead of your husband's past sprees. I'm told the higher interest rates and such won't be as bad as paying off all the old debt, and for house purchases etc, you may be able to prove the bankruptcy was a special circumstance and not your fault. Get good advice from a bankruptcy and divorce lawyer first of course. A good bankruptcy lawyer may have a consultation fee, but it's well worth it. He would be able to go over your debts and advise you of your options.
If you dont have a lawyer, you should be able to look up info on your county website. Some states are 50/50 so it depends. Good luck.
