The objective of the What To Do When… podcast is to discuss common legal scenarios faced by everyday citizens in Virginia. Critzer and Cardani practice law throughout Virginia and focus their practice around the state’s capital of Richmond, in the Piedmont region. Tune in and subscribe to learn about legal topics such as reckless driving by speeding, bad lawyers, Will Knows Weed, juvenile defense, juvenile sex crimes, reckless driving, the legalization of marijuana in Virginia, divorce 101, Child Support, There is Still Hope, and others.
What To Do When… Your Spouse Files for Bankruptcy.
On this legal video podcast chat with a Family Law Legal Agreement subject matter in our What To Do When… podcast series, please join our hosts Jackie Critzer and Scott Cardani as they share about What To Do When… The Unwed Breakup. This video and audio podcast episode focuses on a legal process where those who are unwed breakup.
Tune in today for not only our top 3 take-aways, but also some chat about the following subject matters and other helpful action items from a ‘legal chat slant’ from Critzer Cardani’s legal partners.
* Cardani and Critzer discuss bankruptcy and its impact on relationships.
* Jackie and Scott discuss what to do when a spouse files for bankruptcy, including disclosing income and reporting household members.
* Scott questions the impact of bankruptcy on married couples, including potential effects on property ownership and mortgages.
* Scott Cardani clarifies when only the filing spouse’s credit will be impacted, while the non-filing spouse’s credit remains unaffected.
* Jackie Critzer explains how bankruptcy affects co-owned property and debt, even if only one spouse files.
* Scott questions the impact of bankruptcy on married couples, including potential effects on property ownership and mortgages.
Watch the Video, Listen to the Audio version and / or Follow, Like, and Share… “What To Do When…” Legal Chat Podcast from Critzer Cardani PC.
The objective of the What To Do When… podcast is to discuss common legal scenarios faced by everyday citizens in Virginia. Critzer and Cardani practice law throughout Virginia and focus their practice around the state’s capital of Richmond, in the Piedmont region. Tune in and subscribe to learn about legal topics such as reckless driving by speeding, bad lawyers, Will Knows Weed, juvenile defense, juvenile sex crimes, reckless driving, the legalization of marijuana in Virginia, divorce 101, Child Support, There is Still Hope and others.
Thank you for sending us your feedback, questions, or topic suggestions for future #WTDW | What To Do When… episodes by emailing [email protected].
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Transcript:
What To Do When… Intro 00:01
Welcome to What To Do When… A podcast from real lawyers with real perspective, where we explore a variety of legal issues and scenarios. Each week we focus on a new topic and discuss what to do when and if any of these legal scenarios ever happened to you or a loved one. With over 40 years of combined legal experience, our hosts offer their unique perspectives and insights on a range of real life legal situations.
Jackie Critzer 0:28
Hi, there. Welcome back to another podcast here at Critzer Cardani. I’m Jackie.
Scott Cardani 0:34
I’m Scott. Jackie, what’s on the docket today?
Jackie Critzer 0:37
What To Do When… Your Spouse Files for Bankruptcy.
Scott Cardani 0:41
Are you talking still married? or Divorced?
Jackie Critzer 0:45
Well… spouse, married.
Scott Cardani 0:47
Okay, I just want to make sure that I understood what you’re talking about. Because that’s crazy. You mean my spouse can file bankruptcy? Without me?
Jackie Critzer 0:52
For sure.
Scott Cardani 0:53
No way, I don’t believe it.
Jackie Critzer 0:55
So there’s a couple things. We’re going to talk about married living together, married not living together and not married at all.
Scott Cardani 1:03
Okay.
Jackie Critzer 1:04
Married living together. Life is not quite grand because somebody’s falling bankruptcy. But it’s it’s going okay. There’s no separation on the horizon. Bankruptcy requires that you disclose all income, all household income, all household income. So your spouse isn’t named, your spouse doesn’t have their social security number associated with your bankruptcy, but their income is disclosed as part of the bankruptcy that has to be there’s a couple different financial tests that have to be done.
Scott Cardani 1:34
Yep.
Jackie Critzer 1:34
Really, no matter what chapter of bankruptcy, you file 7 or 13 from the consumer world. Those numbers are going to be included. You can’t, you can’t fudge it, you can’t get around it. And also, you have to report the number of what we say heads on bed. So people in the house.
Scott Cardani 1:50
Okay.
Jackie Critzer 1:50
Okay. Your spouse, non filing spouse has in no way is in no way impacted by your bankruptcy directly. Indirectly, there are some things you might notice, for example, if we’re married, we own a home together. Yep. And both on the deed both on the lien, and it’s ABC bank. Well, if I file for bankruptcy, this is the second time I’ve found that I don’t like this scenario. But if I file for bankruptcy, but Scott doesn’t file for bankruptcy, we’re married and we own property together, it’s really not that big of a deal, except that it on the mortgage like in their computer system, it’s going to say mortgage loan included in bankruptcy somewhere. So it’s gonna say something like that, but not necessarily directly impact.
Scott Cardani 2:40
So it’s not gonna ding my credit.
Jackie Critzer 2:42
Not gonna ding your credit at all. Same thing with credit cards. Same thing, actually. That’s an important distinction. If we have some credit cards together, yeah, those are likely going to be shut down. Not every time but almost every time if we are, especially if I am the owner of the card, and you’re just a signer. Yep, gone, credit cards gone. If we are both owners of the account, that’s a little tougher, but I think most of the time they err on the side of caution they’re going to close those accounts. So you want to be aware of that as well. But um, if you’re not jointly filing your your credit will never show that you were involved in a bankruptcy.
Scott Cardani 3:19
Whew.
Jackie Critzer 3:19
What if you’re married and not living together? Well, all of the before is still true as far as credit worthiness and we dinging your credit and all that. But if you’re in separate households, now, you don’t have to report spouse income.
Scott Cardani 3:32
Okay.
Jackie Critzer 3:32
Okay, now, that’s now just your household income. That’s just it’s all the court really needs to know about and really once reported.
Scott Cardani 3:38
So that makes it a little easier for you to file if you’re separated, probably correct. Especially if you and I both make $20,000 a piece that’s $40,000. If it’s 1, it’s $40,000, then only consider the 20,000. Right?
Jackie Critzer 3:51
Right. Now, if we’re living together, not married, it’s certainly not going to have any impact on your on your, your credit as far as the bankruptcy is concerned, but the same rules apply to co owned property and CO owned debt. So you’re still going to see those accounts going in, they’re going to be notated somewhere that somebody that one of the CO owners filed for bankruptcy. So it’s not that you aren’t completely not impacted. I mean, the accounts are noted but but nothing is is goes on to your credit report as a result of a spouse.
Scott Cardani 4:25
Let me ask a question then, so we own a house together. We have a mortgage together, you file bankruptcy again. And the note we’d always pays together, you come to me and say I’m not gonna pay my half I file bankruptcy. I still have to pay it right. You’re out of that obligation to pay that mortgage Correct? Or maybe a credit card.
Jackie Critzer 4:47
Maybe a credit card if and really sort of depends on what we’re what we’re doing. But the obligation to pay on something I want to keep really does continue.
Scott Cardani 4:57
Okay.
Jackie Critzer 4:58
So if I want to keep the house we Want to keep the house? Fine. But that’s a great question. Because what about if we’re separated?
Scott Cardani 5:05
Yeah.
Jackie Critzer 5:06
And you’re in the house, and I file for bankruptcy because I’m not paying for a house I’m not in, and I have other debt that I can’t pay, right. That’s not the only reason that I can’t be forced to pay it.
Scott Cardani 5:18
That’s what I thought. So that’s really important to know, folks. And these things get really tricky. You had one other category of not married.
Jackie Critzer 5:27
The not married, it would just go back to the same thing. If CO owned property or CO own debt, you’re gonna see some dings there. But if we’re, if we own property together, but we don’t….
Scott Cardani 5:40
Alright, let’s do what everybody is doing today, the modern style, which I don’t agree with, but is we’re gonna live together.
Jackie Critzer 5:45
Yep.
Scott Cardani 5:46
We’re gonna purchase the house together, get on the mortgage together.
Jackie Critzer 5:48
Well, that’s a step in the very right direction. But yes.
Scott Cardani 5:52
So what happens if you filed for bankruptcy?
Jackie Critzer 5:55
You’re still obligated and I’m not.
Scott Cardani 5:57
Can they count my income on your diagnosis. Okay.
Jackie Critzer 5:57
No, no roommate income, not necessarily. Not like in spouse, exact spouse income is different. But your roommate income, okay, or boyfriend, girlfriend, partner income, there is a place to notate where you’re getting help with some of the bills. But it’s important when you’re filing bankruptcy to go to an attorney who knows what they’re doing when it comes to bankruptcy. Because if you file your schedules, and you say, here are the household bills, and I’m paying all of them, when you’re not, you’re only paying for half of all of them, you’re gonna you’re gonna likely get some questions about that and have to correct some schedules and jump through some hoops that ordinarily might not have to. So just be wise about how you list your debts, how you list your your income, and make sure you’re reporting what you’re actually paying for in the household. But we handle bankruptcy here, and I’m happy to answer questions for you as well.
Scott Cardani 6:54
Yeah, you know, this is really important. And I want to bring this up, because we’ll finish on this. But I just think it’s an important caveat. It’s really not a caveat, but think about this. Sometimes, money situations are the one of the biggest causes of divorce.
Jackie Critzer 7:07
Sure.
Scott Cardani 7:08
And a lot of times people think that if Jackie files bankruptcy, it’s going to ruin me. And it creates an unnecessary tension. And that’s what we’re trying to unresolved or unravel here and say, you know, sometimes it may be the best thing in the world for Jackie to go ahead and file in our family situation says she got a little crazy with credit cards and went overwhelmed and you know, just didn’t realize
Jackie Critzer 7:29
Maybe i co-signed.
Scott Cardani 7:30
Maybe she cosign remember that one, but
Jackie Critzer 7:32
Somebody’s $100,000 truck, you know and defaulted.
Scott Cardani 7:35
Yeah, exactly. So there’s some situations that, you know, to save the marriage might be worth it. And sometimes we have these beliefs that aren’t true.
Jackie Critzer 7:46
Preconceived ideas, just based in untruths.
Scott Cardani 7:49
So all of a sudden, you’re allowing this festering thing to happen when there is a way out. So my point is, when you have these situations, and you’re struggling with issues come talk to us, we’re experienced divorce lawyers, Jackie’s a very experienced bankruptcy attorney very good at what she does. A lot of times there’s a solution that doesn’t have to end with I hate you.
Jackie Critzer 8:10
Correct.
Scott Cardani 8:11
And, you know, that’s a really good thing. If we can get a solution that doesn’t have to end up with I hate you and never want to see you again.
Jackie Critzer 8:18
Well, on rebuilding after bankruptcy is not the impossibility that a lot of people think that it is it is definitely possible. And it’s possible in a relatively short amount of time. This isn’t a 10 year horizon of rebuilding, this is a much shorter time and and there are lots of tools and avenues to rebuild your life after bankruptcy because sometimes it’s just one of the necessary things people go through. That’s why it’s available to us. So we can also help you with the rebuilding process.
Scott Cardani 8:45
All right, remember like and subscribe.
Jackie Critzer 8:48
See you next time.
Scott Cardani 8:49
Thank you.
What To Do When… Outro 08:50
We hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of What To Do When… For more episodes, be sure to subscribe to our podcast and we encourage you to check archives to listen to previous topics. Tune in next week for a new episode and some fresh perspective from Critzer Cardani.
Need Legal Representation? Contact Critzer Cardani.We look forward to helping you in this venture and Good Luck!
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