I seperated from wife in April 24th, moved away waiting to file for divorce in 60 days in new county. am i liable for wife’s debts still

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I seperated from wife in April 24th, moved away waiting to file for divorce in 60 days in new county. am i liable for wife’s debts still

Asked on June 30, 2009 under Family Law, Texas

Answers:

M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 14 years ago | Contributor

I am not admitted in Texas but it appears from what I have read that if the the answer is "yes." Debt incurred during the marriage is considered to be both of your debt, unless you have a really good amount of evidence to the contrary.

It has been written that "(U)pon divorce, the court divides community debts and assigns certain debts (or a certain percentage of each debt) to each of the spouses. ut this does not completely absolve you of all liability for your community debts. Even if certain debts are assigned to your spouse to repay, if your spouse defaults and a creditor contacts you, that creditor is entitled to receive payment from you. While this may not seem fair, this rule is to protect all creditors who were not parties to a divorce. Because the creditor opened the credit account in the name of both spouses and depended upon the resources, assets and income of both spouses to repay the loan amount, that creditor is entitled to take any necessary collective action against either spouse. While you cannot avoid liability by filing a motion to enforce the divorce, you can be compensated for any payments you make. If you are forced to make payment on a debt that the divorce decree assigned to your spouse, you may file an action for breach of contract against your spouse to recover the amount you paid. The divorce decree is considered a binding contract under Texas law. "


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