Potential bankruptcy clients frequently ask: “My wife/husband does not want to file, if I do, is she/he required to file also?” Negative. Involuntary bankruptcy is provided for in the bankruptcy laws. It is a complex proceeding in which creditors band together to throw a corporation or individual into Chapter 7 bankruptcy so they can get [...]
spouses
Bankruptcy and divorce go hand in hand. It may sound like a good way for divorced couples to end their joint bill problems. A prospective client recently posed the following question: I was divorced within the past year. While I was married, my ex-husband and I incurred over $50,000 in credit card debt. Some of [...]
A second mortgage lien in the wife’s individual Chapter 13 bankruptcy case has been stripped by a Court, even though the mortgage and lien were in the name of the wife and her non-filing husband. Eastern District of Michigan bankruptcy Judge Rhodes wrote the opinion, finding the debts totally unsecured. In each case, it was [...]
For along time in the United States, we have recognized that husbands and wives are separate legal entities. We may take for granted that women can own property in their own name or that a husband does not ‘own’ his wife. We accept that generally speaking, spouses are not responsible for each other’s debts. They [...]
Filing bankruptcy is a tough decision to make, and one that married couples in particular find difficult. One of the most frequent questions asked about bankruptcy is whether spouses must file together. Married couples are not forced to file for bankruptcy together. Though they are allowed to do so, there’s nothing in the law that [...]
