I'd want to discuss the situation with my attorney (not hers--yours, since you each may need your own in this case), before she filed, just to make sure that everything that could be protected, was protected, BEFORE she files and you find that you maybe needed to do something beforehand to make sure you kept the things you think are yours (community property state? may not make any difference whose name is actually on the deed?--I'm not an attorney, I don't know the answer, but I'd definitely be finding out for sure, were I in your shoes).

Hi probably about to be un-happycthulhu,

I'd say that, as usual, azzalea has offered some worthwhile advice.

Probably you'd better get ready for your spouse to be rather depressed, short-tempered and somewhat less than fun to live with.

And you, as well - such issues are sort of like a virus - catching. When one is around them on a daily basis.

ole joyful

I read this post earlier today, too. I didn't offer any thoughts, though mine were right in line with azzalea's.

Marriage is contract between two people and it carries legal ramifications, as well as perks. I live in a "community property" state"; that means that the assets are split 50/50 in a divorce unless there is a contract specifically outlining the "exceptions". You need to visit YOUR lawyer and get the "full skinny" before your wife files. Bankruptcy is a very serious step (even more so now that the laws have been tightened) and you need to be sure YOUR personal name/credit rating won't be tainted by what your wife is facing.

Lawyers are GREAT. People too often pan them, make fun of them, insult them. But they know the law and they will represent your best interest. Mine is great, so is the one who represents Mum. Worth every dime they've ever earned!

Good luck and if you feel up to it, please let us know what you find out.

You sound financially squared away and your wife needs to file? The Trustee is going to have a problem with that. BK is a ten year mistake, any way you can work around it?

Been there with the debt-generating ex.

Every state has different rules governing bankruptcy. Therefore, you must check with an attorney.

In my case, we consulted his attorney and I checked with an attorney separately. Mine was a free consultation through my employee assistance program. If you have an EAP through work, I highly recommend that you use this service. It is confidential.

I can only say that the attorneys, both experienced in bankruptcy in my state, were very helpful. We followed their recommendations, which protected my assets (including the house) and credit rating as well as his a**.

Good luck. This is an icky, stressful thing to go through, but there is an end to the process eventually.

I live in Arkansas and don't know if we're a Community Property state. (Anyone know?)
As for me being financially sound, I'm not. I just don't have any debt in my name except for the mortgage.
My paycheck is the only money we have. She's a student.
She's visiting a BK lawyer tomorrow and she plans on asking what my status will be, but I thought someone here might have gone through something similar.

As for working around it....I doubt it. She had about $10k in medical and another $14k in credit debt.
We went the Consumer Credit Councling route already and still couldn't come up with a solution.

Bankruptcy is an extremely drastic step. Also, spouses that are on completely different pages financially may be in a similarly drastic situation.

She's been through CCC and "couldn't come up with a solution?" Is this premarital debt only? Has she always been a student? Is there anything to sell? If she has equity in the car, can she sell it and use the equity to pay off debt? If she still owes on the car, how will she be making the payments? Will she consider putting the education on hold while paying off the debt she incurred?

And the biggest issue: Does she know how this happened, has she accepted that a change needs to occur, and is she willing to make the change? Since you are employed, do you have her on your health insurance now to keep the medical bills from piling up again?

Bankruptcy, in my opinion, seldom solves anything. Especially if the bankrupt person hasn't come to terms with the changes needed to keep it from happening again.

And, let me elaborate on what another poster mentioned. You are married. You have an obligation to one another. Almost two years ago, my husband lost his job. The year before he had taken on a chunk of debt from his ex-wife, absent my approval. He added that to an already large chunk of debt leftover from that marriage. Financially, I could afford to keep the house and my car. I was angry at the time, and considered doing just that.

Financially, my husband was bankrupt. He had zero income coming in, a $350 car payment and $27K in credit card debt. But, you know what? he was my husband. I made the hard decision to sell the house and downsize and then was able to maintain the household on my income while any income he earned went toward his debt. We were debt-free except the house in 10 months.

I'm thinking if your wife works her tail off for a year at a job that pays 30K or more, she can have this debt knocked out. Then she can go back to school.

You both need to think hard about the future and what you really want before she takes this drastic step.

Thanks for the response, but none of that is an option.
If she were able to get a $30,000 job, we'd jump on it.
Hell, If I were able to make over $40k there'd be no issues.
We don't live above our means and the only thing we shouldn't spend money on is smoking which we're about to quit.

Her car isn't paid off yet. (BTW, I pay all the bills and she has to stay in school in order to get a good job)
There are no more credit cards, and she is on my insurance now.

I think I've gone over all the reasons to not file, but filing still seems like the only option.

The only questions I still have is how this might affect me.

You really need to talk to a lawyer. Usually the first visit is free.
allot will depend on your state laws, but when I was with the credit card company I saw many spouses file where the other didn't and the non filing spouse wasn't affected.
if there is any joint debt once one party files the debt falls to the non-filing person.
The only tricky part could be the car. If it is in her name she will have to reaffirm the debt. This has to be approved by the lender. If the payments are not current they can refuse.
One thing to keep in mind is with the new bankruptcy laws the lawyer fees have gone up allot.
Also if she has used her cards in the past 9 months there is a chance the creditors may contest the BK. Again another reason to see a lawyer.
Is there a chance she could get a part time job in the evenings after school?
One thing noone has mentioned is now days companies pull credit reports on potential new hires,there is a risk that a poor credit rating could hurt her chances of getting a job when she graduates. Insurance companies also use credit reports to determine rates something else to keep in mind.
The important thing is to be fully educated on the pros and cons of filing so you can make a wise decision.
Good luck to you

Arkansas is not a community property state. Bankruptcy is Federal law, but exemptions are state law. See a Bankruptcy attorney together, they will tell you honestly the effect, but make sure its an attorney and not some "paralegal" firm that will not be accurate. The "paralegal's" cannot go to court and often encourage people to lie and are often sanctioned by the court because of it. Since Bankruptcy is federal law, even in Los angeles there is only one Bankruptcy court (several judges) and attorneys don't want to get involved with somebody whose bankruptcy is going to be dismissed because you shouldn't have filed in the first place. Its a lot of extra work and the bankruptcy court regulates how much attorneys can charge more than any other field.

We used to get cases where the husband wanted the wife to file or vice versa --evidently dreaming that it would not affect both of them. Good luck on that. The new Bankruptcy law was bought and paid for by the Credit Card companies so you can bet that getting rid of her debt without affecting you is most unlikely, as your income will be used in the calculations as to whether you can do a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 (which is a payback)

You have a house,and have something to lose, so go talk with a Bk attorney; you need to know the value of your house and the amount of exemption that is allowed in your state.
Myfask is correct that some companies who are hiring, will look at your credit rating--but they are looking for a large amount of debt. Employees who steal or embezzle usually owe a great deal of money. If you just filed BK, you don't need to steal because the credit card companies aren't calling you everyday or attempting to garnish your wages.

Credit card companies are pretty aggressive trying to get you to pull more cards after the BK---your credit is not gone forever. Some companies even solicited the attorneys to recommend their special "after bankruptcy secured cards"
Yes the legal fees for attorneys have gone up a lot--I got out of the field because the new laws make the attorney responsible for the client's errors. If they didn't know how much they owed how in the world would I know.
Unless your wife practiced fraud; buying furniture, art, etc. and selling it, or ran up more debt than normal just before filing,credit card companies do not contest the BK. There is enough fraud out there that they don'thave to go after somebody who is a typical filer.