Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Louisiana
Liability of children for debts of deceased parents
Can a child of adult age be forced to assume the debts of a parent upon the parent's death? For clarification, the following conditions apply:
1. The parent has no estate (no assets to speak of).
2. the child has never agreed verbally or in writing to assume such responsibility (e.g., never cosigned any loans).
3. The debts consist of credit card debt and medical bills.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Liability of children for debts of deceased parents
Assuming that all of the conditions you list are true, then the answer is no, although it is not uncommon for creditors to try to collect a parent's debt from the children.
The children have no legal obligation to pay the debts. There is no contractual liability unless, for example, a loan was co-signed or otherwise guaranteed by the child.
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