Legal Question in Bankruptcy in California

My spouse has a discharged Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2009. We own a home in CA and have continued making payments on time. The same credit union that has our mortgage has a delinquent credit card bill that was included in the bankruptcy, I never had access to the credit card and my spouse wrote in the bankruptcy that the only shared debt was our mortgage. Because of the community property state can the bank still come after me for this credit card debt if my spouse's bankruptcy stated that I was not responsible for this particular debt?


Asked on 2/19/10, 2:07 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Asaph Abrams Law Office of Asaph Abrams

From section 524 of Title 11: a separately-filing spouse's discharge "operates as an injunction... on account of any allowable community claim..." In English: the creditor cannot collect from the community [(meaning the spouse and the non-filing spouse (you)] by virtue of the filing-spouse's discharge. But, it is bad to take a loan or credit from an already-secured creditor, like your credit union. They often have cross-collateral provisions that permit them to secure otherwise unsecured-debts against the collateral you've already put up. I would look into that. Your spouse's attorney should be able to advise.

Important disclaimer:

Unilateral written communications may be incomplete or misconstrued. This answer is not legal advice and it is based upon the limited and partial information provided in the question. This answer is general in nature. It is strictly opinion and legal opinions differ and some may be incorrect. This reply does not create legal representation and does not create an attorney-client relationship (or retainer). The information herein should not be relied upon in determining whether or not to take or refrain from any action. Only an attorney that agrees in writing to represent a person is capable of giving legal advice in response to a question. Such a hired or retained attorney is in a unique position wherein he or she can clarify the questions, determine and avoid conflicts of interest and gather all the information necessary to give an informed answer. A retained attorney is in a unique position to follow up on their legal advice and adapt/correct it as circumstances change or new information or knowledge comes to light. All individuals are urged to retain competent legal counsel before filing for bankruptcy. Errors in completing and filing a bankruptcy petition can have disastrous consequences.

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Answered on 2/25/10, 9:29 am


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