Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Georgia
Death Of Wife
My wife passed away on July 15, 2005. She had a credit card with a balance of around $2000. It was in her name only. My name was not on it. Am I responsible for the credit card? I had very little life insurance on my wife and cant pay it all off. Thanks
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Death Of Wife
Your wife's estate would be responsible for paying any outstanding debts. If there is not enough in the estate, then no one is responsible for the debt (with some rare exceptions). Money paid to you as beneficiary of the life insurance would not be considered part of the estate.
If you would like to discuss any issues further, please feel free to contact my office. My contact information is below. Thank you.
The foregoing is general information only, not specific legal advice. No attorney/client relation has been created or should be implied.
Glenn M. Lyon, Esq
MacGregor Lyon, LLC
Promenade II
1230 Peachtree Street NE
Suite 1900
Atlanta Georgia 30309
Phone 404.942.3545
Fax 404.795.0993
www.macgregorlyon.com
Re: Death Of Wife
The answer is "maybe."
Your wife's estate is responsible for paying any outstanding debts. If there's not enough to cover the debts of her estate, then the debt goes unpaid. You cannot take things from the estate (for example if she owned a car, home or bank account) without first paying debts, except things in joint tenancy with right of survivorship are generally solely yours.
Insurance proceeds with you as beneficiary are not counted towards the debt. You keep that.
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