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#1365725 05/01/05 01:03 AM
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 366
J
jhj75 Offline OP
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J
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 366
Well, W and I have finally decided to go thru with the whole divorce thing. We both reached the boiling point and have decided we can't stand to look at each other anymore. Unfortunately, we're so deep in debt that we can't "afford" to get divorced. I make a good income and she throws a bit in, so it's enough to live comfortably together, but neither of us can afford to live separately, especially given the combined $1400 child support and alimony I will have to pay her monthly.

My lawyer recommended we go thru the bankruptcy process before we start any divorce proceedings, esp. now that we've got the new bankruptcy laws as a time limit. We've got a meeting scheduled with a bankruptcy lawyer next week, but I was just curious if anyone else has gone thru this process (bankruptcy then divorce), and if so, how did it go?

The hard part is going to be the house. We have little equity in it and we'll definitely be getting rid of it in the bankruptcy.

Any comments welcome.

J

Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 12
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Yes. We did a Chapter 7 no-asset bankruptcy after I filed for divorce. This was on the advice of both lawyers because of the HUGE credit card debt my wife had run up. Now there is basically no debt to divy up. Understand that the lawyers are not dumb. Since the bankruptcy is over, we can't include them in the debts discharged. Hmmmm. The good news is that I have zero consumer debt. A real "fresh start". If you think this is going to happen, I suggest you do it quickly due to BARF. Our district is notorious for putting people in chapter 13 (negotiated repayment), but during the hearing the "D" work pretty much shut down the questioning and our chapter 7 went through without a hitch. The equity in our house is exempt in our state, so that will be used to pay the lawyers when it is sold.

Good luck. Check out
http://chat-cards.com/wwwboard/bankruptcy/messages.html

This is a very helpful board for BR questions.

Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 366
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jhj75 Offline OP
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Posts: 366
So you filed for the big D then did your bankruptcy? Did you do single or joint? My lawyer recommended that we file for joint bankruptcy and THEN file for divorce. Judging by my wife's instability I'm now wondering if I should file for divorce then do the bankruptcy.

Joined: Mar 2001
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Well you could discharge your debt, not be eligible to discharge debt again for 7 years and then be held responsible for your stbx's debt because you were still married when she accrued it.

These are the things you need to ask your lawyer if they could happen. Remember that CC companies will not care if you are divorcing - they just want their money no matter who charged it!

Sunny

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Yes, I filed for divorce first, not that it really matters much. There was a long time (nine months) after I filed that nothing progressed with the divorce because we tried to reconcile. The BR was filed during that time. I also put a fraud alert on my credit file to thwart any attempts to get credit in my name, and I pull a credit report occasionally just to check. Could she run up more debt now? Maybe, but it is very hard to get a large amount of credit right after a BR. Also, I suspect that since we have been separated for a year and filed BR, it would be fairly hard for her to convince a judge that I should pay for any new debt she runs up. Hopefully I won't have to test that.

It is quite amazing really. $96,000 of credit card debt wiped out with two sentences from a judge and their signature. Still boggles my mind. Never thought I'd be one of "those" people.


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