Do I need to pay my spouse back money lent during the marriage?
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Do I need to pay my spouse back money lent during the marriage?
In March of this year my spouse lent me
7,000 to pay off a credit card. We are
now going through a divorce and my
spouse us asking for the money back.
What legal right do they have to ask
and receive that money from me?
Asked on September 20, 2017 under Family Law, Georgia
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Was the money a loan or a gift? If it was a loan--if at the time he gave you the money, the agreement between was that you would repay it--then you have to repay it: a loan between family members is enforceable. You would have to repay it when the original terms of the loan stated--that is, when you agreed--to repay it, however; he cannot ask for it earlier (well, he can *ask* but you don't have to do what he requests) than you and he had previously agreed it would be repaid.
If *at the time* he gave you the money it was a gift, with no agreement to repay, he has no right to get it back; a gift, once given, cannot be ungiven and belongs to the recipient.
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