{"id":2658,"date":"2013-02-07T12:57:11","date_gmt":"2013-02-07T18:57:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bgs.com\/?p=2658"},"modified":"2013-02-07T12:57:11","modified_gmt":"2013-02-07T18:57:11","slug":"what-happens-to-debt-during-a-divorce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/2013\/02\/07\/what-happens-to-debt-during-a-divorce\/","title":{"rendered":"What Happens to Debt During a Divorce?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>During a divorce, many people focus on the assets that are acquired during a marriage without giving very much thought to the debts. The division of debt <a href=\"https:\/\/bgs.com\/minnesota-divorce-law-basics\/\">during a divorce<\/a> can be a very sticky issue that will have a great impact on your financial future.<br \/>\nWhile we can\u2019t tell you who will have to pay for what, we can tell you that the courts use the principle of \u201cequitable distribution\u201d as their guideline. That means the court will look over the total story of the debt and that debt\u2019s place in the marital partnership while reaching a decision about who might ultimately be responsible. That might include whether the debt was taken out before or after the marriage, whose name the debt is in, what the debt was used to purchase, whether the other spouse knew about the debt or not, and a host of other factors.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/bgs.com\/areas-of-practice\/divorce\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-4481 size-thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/bgs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Divorce-150x38.png\" alt=\"Divorce\" width=\"150\" height=\"38\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>\u201cEquitable distribution\u201d does not mean that you will necessarily feel that the distribution of the debt is fair. It\u2019s quite possible, for example, to end up footing half the bill for something that your spouse never even told you about simply due to a host of other factors that impact your case.<br \/>\nIt may feel unfair to you, but remember that you are in the middle of your situation and may not be the best judge of what is and isn\u2019t equitable. Equitable distribution simply means that the court is going to take all relevant circumstances into account. However, a good divorce attorney can help you present your case in an advantageous way.<br \/>\nThere are several common outcomes for marital debt:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You both work to pay the debt before the divorce is final so that you can both have a fresh start when the divorce is done.<\/li>\n<li>You may become responsible for a greater portion of the debt, typically in exchange for a greater share of the assets.<\/li>\n<li>You may become responsible for a lesser portion of the debt, often in return for a lesser share of the assets.<\/li>\n<li>The debts could be divided equally between you and your spouse.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Be aware that the court\u2019s assignment of the debt does not impose any obligations on your creditors. If the debt is in both names the collection agents can come after both you and your spouse. If your spouse is refusing to pay debts that he or she has been assigned, you can petition the court to enforce the divorce decree; this is something <a href=\"https:\/\/bgs.com\/areas-of-practice\/family-law\/\">we can help you<\/a> do as well so that it\u2019s done without costly mistakes.<br \/>\nAt <a href=\"https:\/\/bgs.com\">Barna, Guzy, &amp; Steffen<\/a>, we have more than 80 years of combined family law experience and we are well-equipped to help you navigate these difficult financial issues. Call us for a consultation today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>During a divorce, many people focus on the assets that are acquired during a marriage without giving very much thought to the debts. The division of debt during a divorce can be a very sticky issue that will have a great impact on your financial future. While we can\u2019t tell you who will have to pay for what, we can tell you that the courts use the principle of \u201cequitable distribution\u201d as their guideline. That means the court will look over the total story of the debt and that debt\u2019s place in the marital partnership while reaching a decision about who might ultimately be responsible. That might include whether the debt was taken out before or after the marriage, whose name the debt is in, what the debt was used to purchase, whether the other spouse knew about the debt or not, and a host of other factors. \u201cEquitable distribution\u201d does not mean that you will necessarily feel that the distribution of the debt is fair. It\u2019s quite possible, for example, to end up footing half the bill for something that your spouse never even told you about simply due to a host of other factors that impact your case. It may feel unfair to you, but remember that you are in the&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[21],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>What Happens to Debt During a Divorce? - Barna, Guzy &amp; Steffen, LTD.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/2013\/02\/07\/what-happens-to-debt-during-a-divorce\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Happens to Debt During a Divorce? - Barna, Guzy &amp; Steffen, LTD.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"During a divorce, many people focus on the assets that are acquired during a marriage without giving very much thought to the debts. The division of debt during a divorce can be a very sticky issue that will have a great impact on your financial future. While we can\u2019t tell you who will have to pay for what, we can tell you that the courts use the principle of \u201cequitable distribution\u201d as their guideline. That means the court will look over the total story of the debt and that debt\u2019s place in the marital partnership while reaching a decision about who might ultimately be responsible. That might include whether the debt was taken out before or after the marriage, whose name the debt is in, what the debt was used to purchase, whether the other spouse knew about the debt or not, and a host of other factors. \u201cEquitable distribution\u201d does not mean that you will necessarily feel that the distribution of the debt is fair. It\u2019s quite possible, for example, to end up footing half the bill for something that your spouse never even told you about simply due to a host of other factors that impact your case. It may feel unfair to you, but remember that you are in the...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/2013\/02\/07\/what-happens-to-debt-during-a-divorce\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Barna, Guzy &amp; Steffen, LTD.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2013-02-07T18:57:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/bgs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Divorce-150x38.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Elizabeth A. Schading\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Elizabeth A. 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While we can\u2019t tell you who will have to pay for what, we can tell you that the courts use the principle of \u201cequitable distribution\u201d as their guideline. That means the court will look over the total story of the debt and that debt\u2019s place in the marital partnership while reaching a decision about who might ultimately be responsible. That might include whether the debt was taken out before or after the marriage, whose name the debt is in, what the debt was used to purchase, whether the other spouse knew about the debt or not, and a host of other factors. \u201cEquitable distribution\u201d does not mean that you will necessarily feel that the distribution of the debt is fair. It\u2019s quite possible, for example, to end up footing half the bill for something that your spouse never even told you about simply due to a host of other factors that impact your case. 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