Sued by credit card co.???

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Sued by credit card co.???

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:01:41 AM EDT

Long story short.

My soon to be ex-wife has run up thousands on cc's in the last few months. Somewhere between $45-50K, yes K. She owes some cards around $2K-3K and a couple at $5K-6K.

She has no way of paying them off and has not made any payments in the last 4-5 months. I think that at some time those cc companies are going to come after her. Has anyone had this happen? Did you get sued? Do you know anyone this happened to? Curious as to how this is going to go down.

The cards are Bankamerica, MBNA, Capitol One, etc. From the attorneys I have spoken with, she is pretty much collection proof, but not judgement proof. She took all these cards out in *her* name only. I did not even know about them for years as she was having the statements mailed to her mothers and then she in turn would bundle them all up once a month and mail them in a big envelope to my wife, all of this behind my back.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:04:03 AM EDT

[#1]

I'd sit back with popcorn and watch the action.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:04:58 AM EDT

[#2]

Quoted:
I'd sit back with popcorn and watch the action.

Oh, I'm already doing that.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:07:37 AM EDT

[#3]

They will go into judgement status. If you two share a home, they will file a lein against your home. This is nothing to set back and watch for.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:07:40 AM EDT

[#4]

Enjoy the popcorn as they sue you too.

If you're married, you're responsible for that debt.

Sorry bro.

BTDT.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:09:20 AM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
Enjoy the popcorn as they sue you too.

If you're married, you're responsible for that debt.

Sorry bro.

BTDT.

HOLY SHIT

that SUX

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:11:08 AM EDT

[#6]

It could come back on you if it can be shown that you benefited from any of the purchases. Given the amount of money involed, I'd lawyer up *now*. If she files for bankruptcy and lists you as a creditor, that debt could be all yours. Don't ask me how I know....

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:17:48 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
Enjoy the popcorn as they sue you too.

If you're married, you're responsible for that debt.

Sorry bro.

BTDT.

That would be true IF they were *joint* credit cards. They are not. My name is no where on the cards, statements or applications. I have had 3 different bankruptcy attorneys tell me that I am in the clear, unless I somehow profited or conspired with her, which I did not. Everything she bought was for her, not me or our son.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:19:36 AM EDT

[#8]

Quoted:
It could come back on you if it can be shown that you benefited from any of the purchases. Given the amount of money involed, I'd lawyer up *now*. If she files for bankruptcy and lists you as a creditor, that debt could be all yours. Don't ask me how I know....

How could she list me as a creditor?

As stated previously, I did NOT benefit in any way from her purchases. All she bought was clothes and jewelry and I don't look good in a pants suit.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:19:36 AM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Enjoy the popcorn as they sue you too.

If you're married, you're responsible for that debt.

Sorry bro.

BTDT.

HOLY SHIT

that SUX

If I had a year I could express what it feels like to go from
"black" to double digit thousands in the "red" in less than a month

and have NOTHING to show for it.

The ex-first Mrs Goon's favorite little trick was to go out to eat
for every meal, put it on the charge card, then, throw it all up.

Then, go and, eat another, meal, throw it up....

That and "Express" an uber expensive chick shop.

I was very, very lucky that her parents too care of her debts
during the divorce.

I cannot tell you what it feels like as an E-3 to find five CC statements
with double digit thousands of dollars of cash advances stuffed in the glovebox of your
wife's car.

I almost killed myself...I couldn't comprehend that kind of debt.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:19:48 AM EDT

[#10]

IIRC, NOT LEGAL ADVISE, etc.

That being said....

It depends on the state you live in. For example, in Florida, if one spouse obtains credit of their own, without the other spouse being part of it, then that spouse alone is responsible for it. In other states, like Wisconsin, both are responsible.

You could choose to either do the legal research yourself, or lawyer-up and protect yourself. The thousand or so you may spend for a lawyer will probably protect your credit rating, your home, car, etc.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:20:39 AM EDT

[#11]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Enjoy the popcorn as they sue you too.

If you're married, you're responsible for that debt.

Sorry bro.

BTDT.

That would be true IF they were *joint* credit cards. They are not. My name is no where on the cards, statements or applications. I have had 3 different bankruptcy attorneys tell me that I am in the clear, unless I somehow profited or conspired with her, which I did not. Everything she bought was for her, not me or our son.

who is listed on the house note?

like the others have said, they could come after your home..

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:21:09 AM EDT

[#12]

Get her name off the deed to any property you jointly own with her, if that has not already happened yet.

Some of the credit cards may just write the debt off and not sue her but with that much debt some of them will sue. Her phone is going to be ringing off the hook with debt collectors.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:21:10 AM EDT

[#13]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Enjoy the popcorn as they sue you too.

If you're married, you're responsible for that debt.

Sorry bro.

BTDT.

That would be true IF they were *joint* credit cards. They are not. My name is no where on the cards, statements or applications. I have had 3 different bankruptcy attorneys tell me that I am in the clear, unless I somehow profited or conspired with her, which I did not. Everything she bought was for her, not me or our son.

yep-- had a friend who got divorced-- cards were in his name and she racked them up! even transferred balances from her cards to his... they were only in his name, he got screwed, and she stole all kinds of stuff. Really sad.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:21:24 AM EDT

[#14]

Quoted:
They will go into judgement status. If you two share a home, they will file a lein against your home. This is nothing to set back and watch for.

They file a lien against *her* share, not mine. All her share represents is a 50% interest in the house and that is pretty much worthless to them. Now, when and if the time comes to sell the house it has been told to me that the cc companies will probably take her share. So in other words, she ends up with nothing.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:22:51 AM EDT

[#15]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Enjoy the popcorn as they sue you too.

If you're married, you're responsible for that debt.

Sorry bro.

BTDT.

That would be true IF they were *joint* credit cards. They are not. My name is no where on the cards, statements or applications. I have had 3 different bankruptcy attorneys tell me that I am in the clear, unless I somehow profited or conspired with her, which I did not. Everything she bought was for her, not me or our son.

Well, if the lawyers say that, that may be true then. None of it was for me, either.

Wait'll she says that you told her to go buy X and, X and put it on her card, or that
she bought somthing for you.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:22:57 AM EDT

[#16]

If you two are co-endorsers on the note on your home loan the creditors will file a lien against your home. Guess what? You won't be able to refinance your home and to sell it the debts have to be paid before your title will be released.

I look at this sort of stuff everyday. It's a big deal.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:23:22 AM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:
IIRC, NOT LEGAL ADVISE, etc.

That being said....

It depends on the state you live in. For example, in Florida, if one spouse obtains credit of their own, without the other spouse being part of it, then that spouse alone is responsible for it. In other states, like Wisconsin, both are responsible.

You could choose to either do the legal research yourself, or lawyer-up and protect yourself. The thousand or so you may spend for a lawyer will probably protect your credit rating, your home, car, etc.

TN law is the same as FL. Her debt is her debt.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:24:50 AM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Enjoy the popcorn as they sue you too.

If you're married, you're responsible for that debt.

Sorry bro.

BTDT.

That would be true IF they were *joint* credit cards. They are not. My name is no where on the cards, statements or applications. I have had 3 different bankruptcy attorneys tell me that I am in the clear, unless I somehow profited or conspired with her, which I did not. Everything she bought was for her, not me or our son.

Well, if the lawyers say that, that may be true then. None of it was for me, either.

Wait'll she says that you told her to go buy X and, X and put it on her card, or that
she bought somthing for you.

I have invoices from most of what she bought, I don't wear womens clothing.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:29:53 AM EDT

[#19]

Quoted:
I did not even know about them for years as she was having the statements mailed to her mothers and then she in turn would bundle them all up once a month and mail them in a big envelope to my wife, all of this behind my back.

Anyone who goes to that extent to have/ use charge cards has some sort of compulsive disorder problem.
Edit to add:
How does she buy that much stuff and you never have any clue where the money for that stuff was coming from?

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:32:10 AM EDT

[#20]

Quoted:

I have invoices from most of what she bought, I don't wear womens clothing.

Aint what I heard!

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:32:16 AM EDT

[#21]

As you stated previously, you have already spoken with attorney(s), good, because the cc companies ARE going to contact you and WILL tell you that it is YOUR debt to pay when they find out that SHE can't pay it...

That being said, get ready for this and keep a good lawyer handy. The same thing happened to my aunt (I'm 43). Her ex-husband kept several credit cards that she never knew about until after the divorce. None of his credit cards would give cash advances so he'd go to a tool store and buy 10 reciprocal saws, etc and take them brand new with tags still on them to a pawn shop across the street from the tool shop and sell them for cash. Long story short, the credit card company tried to sue him first and found out that he was judgment proof, then they went after my aunt.

Did they get her? no...but it did not stop them from trying. They got all the way to court knowing that they didn't have a prayer before a judge but they were betting that she would cave-in and pay them before it went to trial. The judge issued a summary judgment (without letting it go to a jury) and told the credit card companies to go away and leave her alone but it still cost her some hefty attorney fees to beat them back.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:33:37 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:
Get her name off the deed to any property you jointly own with her, if that has not already happened yet.

Some of the credit cards may just write the debt off and not sue her but with that much debt some of them will sue. Her phone is going to be ringing off the hook with debt collectors.

Right now, since we are going through a divorce (imagine that

) I cannot get her name off of the deed. The attorneys have told me that the cc companies can only go after her interest, not mine. Right now, she has not declard bankruptcy and it might be awhile before she does.

As for the phone, took care of that already. That was one thing one of the attorneys advised first, change your number. It is also unlisted.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:35:24 AM EDT

[#23]

I'm not admitted to practice in TN, but won't that screw you over when you go to sell or refinance the house? I guess if you are going to live there forever it might not matter.

That's a real crappy deal, sorry man.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:37:08 AM EDT

[#24]

Are you actually separated?

In Florida, if you are separated and she pulls that shit, it's HER responsibility.

Check TN law.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:37:47 AM EDT

[#25]

Quoted:
As you stated previously, you have already spoken with attorney(s), good, because the cc companies ARE going to contact you and WILL tell you that it is YOUR debt to pay when they find out that SHE can't pay it...

So far, that has not happened with some of the cc co. I have called. I even point blank asked them "am I responsible for this debt?" and they have all said no, since your name is nowhere to be seen or found on the cards, statements or applications. In fact, they have all told me that they cannot even talk to me about it. I'm not counting on their advice, but I will on my attorneys.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:38:21 AM EDT

[#26]

Quoted:
As for the phone, took care of that already. That was one thing one of the attorneys advised first, change your number. It is also unlisted.

They'll just track ya down at work or serve you civilly with anything they can if they can't reach you any other way.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:41:09 AM EDT

[#27]

Quoted:
I'm not admitted to practice in TN, but won't that screw you over when you go to sell or refinance the house? I guess if you are going to live there forever it might not matter.

That's a real crappy deal, sorry man.

Well, what it actually means is that they will attach to *her* 50% interest in the home. So, we sell the house and I get half of the equity and her half of the equity will more than likely get gobbled up by the cc companies, at least the ones that go after her. Some of her cc debt is a few hundred or a thousand or two and I don't really expect that they will go all the way after her. But who knows??

Yes, its a crappy deal. Especially for our son.

There is a lot more to this story, but that is for another time and place.

I just wanted to see if there was actually anyone that had the cc companies come all the way after them for their debt.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:43:02 AM EDT

[#28]

Quoted:
They'll just track ya down at work or serve you civilly with anything they can if they can't reach you any other way.

They'll have to track *her* down. She isn't living in our home anymore, thank God.

I do fully expect to start receiving registered letters any day now. I am not going to sign for them, I'll just give the post office her new address and let it go from there.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:46:17 AM EDT

[#29]

Aint what I heard!

Don't even jokingly say that. You'd hate to see rebel_rifle's wife print this thread out and use it in court with a comment like that. When we're dealing with legal matters, we need to be very careful so we don't hurt our fellow forum member.

Here in SC, my nephew's wife bought a new car the day before their divorce was final. GMAC sued him, and the judge ordered him to pay for the vehicle. The worst part was that GMAC was smart about it. Rather than just repossessing the vehicle, which would leave them with something that was worth less than what they were owed, they just sued the ex-husband so they got every penny they were owed plus interest and fees. Just be careful. The courts are not kind to men who break their vows.z

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:46:27 AM EDT

[#30]

There is also another aspect of this that I have not stated. IMHO, in order to get the cards she committed fraud on the applications. She did work part time for a very small salary, much smaller than mine and the credit lines that they gave her were astounding. I don't have any cards in my name with the credit she was given.

FYI, I counted 49 cards in her possession at the very end. Some of these were old cards or dupes, but it represented about 25-30 different accounts or companies.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:49:22 AM EDT

[#31]

Quoted:
Aint what I heard!

Don't even jokingly say that. You'd hate to see rebel_rifle's wife print this thread out and use it in court with a comment like that. When we're dealing with legal matters, we need to be very careful so we don't hurt our fellow forum member.

Here in SC, my nephew's wife bought a new car the day before their divorce was final. GMAC sued him, and the judge ordered him to pay for the vehicle. The worst part was that GMAC was smart about it. Rather than just repossessing the vehicle, which would leave them with something that was worth less than what they were owed, they just sued the ex-husband so they got every penny they were owed plus interest and fees. Just be careful. The courts are not kind to men who break their vows.z

Thanks, zoom.

I really appreciate what you said.

As for vows, she is the one who has broken them, not me.

As I said, there is a lot more to this story as I am sure most of you have figured out already.

Posted: 2/20/2006 6:53:55 AM EDT

[#32]

They dont consider credit jointly once your married, its still an individual thing. If its in her name only your pretty safe except the assets you own jointly, like the house.

Posted: 2/20/2006 7:03:55 AM EDT

[#33]

The house may be perfectly safe dependiung on state law and how title is held.
Many states allowed married couples to hold real estate as 'joint tenants by the entirety'.
Neither person owns any fractionof the property and it is not dividable. The single person 'Mr. and Mrs. Name' owns the entire property.

If the property is held in other types of joint tenancy her portion may be attachable however partial ownership of a jointly owed single family house is not very valuable.

It sounds like you have lawyered up. Since there are a ton of local laws about these things rely on them.

In many states husband and wife credit is completely seperate and if you did not sign for the debt it is not yours.
Homestead exemptions are used in other places t protect marital property.

Posted: 2/20/2006 7:09:20 AM EDT

[#34]

Actually, in Florida (and many other states) the 'separation of finances' starts the day that one party actually FILES for divorce. At that point you are required to file an affidavit of finances showing what you own & own on that date.

Been there, done that. Wife #1 went & got a bunch of credit cards during the marriage. All debt she accumulated prior to filing WAS counted in the financial settlement. Anything she ran up AFTER I filed was not counted.

If you have filed, anything after that date _should_ be her problem.

As usual, get an attorney.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Sued by credit card co.???

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