Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Massachusetts

Unless there are any co-debtors, the estate of the deceased is responsible for the debt. If the debt can't be satisfied by the estate, then typically it is effectively extinguished. However, if there are any co-debtors, they would still be liable for the debt.

Generally, the estate would be liable for the debts.

The beneficiaries of the estate are not liable, absent some unique circumstances. That being said, the beneficiaries may receive less from an estate that has significant debts.

Our office prepared an article on this exact topic, which you can ready more about here:

http://vaughnmartel.wordpress.com/2012/08/29/until-debt-do-us-part-who-inherits-credit-card-debt/