Hi,
My spouse and I live in Georgia and are in the process of divorcing. I also know that he is planning to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy a few months after the divorce is finalized. I have a question about how to protect myself from his creditors coming after me when he declares bankruptcy. (I'm filing for divorce pro se -- I'm disabled and don't have any income, so I can't afford a divorce attorney.) Here are the details around my question:
We have kept all of our financial matters completely separate, so there are no joint bank accounts, investments, credit cards, etc. I purchased the house before we were married and it is in my name only, so I know it's considered a pre-marital asset. Before we married, my husband had a judgment against him for an old debt. Since we were married, he has maxed out his credit cards and he received another judgment for an unsecured credit line he was unable to pay when he lost his job during COVID. (I definitely made the right decision when I demanded we keep all of our finances separate!)
Since we keep all of our finances separate and the home is in my name only, none of his creditors have tried to come after me for payment. However, if I understand this correctly, the credit cards he maxed out during our marriage are considered marital debt (even though they're in his name only), so will his creditors try to come after me for this marital debt when he files Chapter 7? He has agreed to be solely responsible for the debts he incurred in his name during the marriage, so I'm stating that explicitly in the Divorce Settlement Agreement. Is this enough to protect me from his creditors coming after me after we're divorced? I've searched throughout all the free legal information for divorce in Georgia, but I haven't been able to find anything that addresses this specific issue. Do any of you know what I need to do in the divorce process to protect myself from his creditors when he files Chapter 7 after the divorce? I'd really appreciate any information or suggestions you have!
My spouse and I live in Georgia and are in the process of divorcing. I also know that he is planning to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy a few months after the divorce is finalized. I have a question about how to protect myself from his creditors coming after me when he declares bankruptcy. (I'm filing for divorce pro se -- I'm disabled and don't have any income, so I can't afford a divorce attorney.) Here are the details around my question:
We have kept all of our financial matters completely separate, so there are no joint bank accounts, investments, credit cards, etc. I purchased the house before we were married and it is in my name only, so I know it's considered a pre-marital asset. Before we married, my husband had a judgment against him for an old debt. Since we were married, he has maxed out his credit cards and he received another judgment for an unsecured credit line he was unable to pay when he lost his job during COVID. (I definitely made the right decision when I demanded we keep all of our finances separate!)
Since we keep all of our finances separate and the home is in my name only, none of his creditors have tried to come after me for payment. However, if I understand this correctly, the credit cards he maxed out during our marriage are considered marital debt (even though they're in his name only), so will his creditors try to come after me for this marital debt when he files Chapter 7? He has agreed to be solely responsible for the debts he incurred in his name during the marriage, so I'm stating that explicitly in the Divorce Settlement Agreement. Is this enough to protect me from his creditors coming after me after we're divorced? I've searched throughout all the free legal information for divorce in Georgia, but I haven't been able to find anything that addresses this specific issue. Do any of you know what I need to do in the divorce process to protect myself from his creditors when he files Chapter 7 after the divorce? I'd really appreciate any information or suggestions you have!