Staying together after a bankruptcy is really tough. Not only do you have your private issues to work through, but you're continuously getting conflicting monetary advice that can put you deeper in the ditch. Staying married is hard. That's why so many people give up

However A divorce declaration doesn't change the fact that you are responsible for any credit held jointly.

When you open joint accounts you and your partner sign a legally binding agreement holding both of you responsible for the account. The divorce declaration is another binding agreement between two people who consent to divorce. It does not change previous agreements between you and other creditors.

It doesn't matter to the creditor who actually made the charges (if it's a credit card). It doesn't matter who agreed to pay in the divorce decree. And it certainly doesn't matter to the creditor that you're getting a divorce. The creditor will try to collect from both borrowers.

A word to the wise, don't sign a divorce petition until everything with your jointly held credit is worked out. Promises to fulfil at a later time or by a certain date can be overlooked and expensive to enforce.

What I mean by "worked out" is that all credit held jointly is closed, refinanced into individual names, or paid off to eliminate the debt.

"Worked out" does not mean that your ex-spouse has signed a promissory note or some other legal document promising to pay off debt.

An irresponsible or vengeful ex-spouse can wreak havoc on your credit rating for years after a divorce. It's legal harassment in its truest form.

…do not sign a divorce decree until all credit matters are resolved. Signing the divorce decree should be your trump card and a very good reason to make things happen your way.

You need to truly resolve matters, which, as I wrote above, means get your name removed from everything jointly held before you sign the divorce papers. That could mean refinancing, creating individual accounts, paying off debt, closing accounts, or whatever it takes.

The last thing you need are late payments appearing on your credit reports after your bankruptcy is discharged. A series of recent late payments can cripple your chances of getting low interest rates after bankruptcy and keep the dark cloud of bankruptcy hanging over your head well after it should.


When you're married, it's often easier to just make all accounts joint accounts. Many of us do it without even thinking. However, if you can both agree to have separate accounts in addition to your joint accounts, it can potentially save months and years of frustration for both of you if you do get divorced--or, for that matter, if there's an unexpected death, disability or layoff.

Another situation where things can get sticky is when your ex-spouse files bankruptcy and you don't. The creditors of jointly held accounts that your spouse filed bankruptcy on will come knocking on your door for payment...and eventually may push you into filing bankruptcy (if you haven't already) regardless if the debts that the spouse filed on were in the divorce decree.