Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia

Debts after divorce

My ex-wife moved to VA when we seperated and after six months filed for divorce. The final decree of divorce has been issued based on statements taken from her and her mother. The seperation agreement used in filing deals only with real estate and property not debt or finances. My ex left me with an extra car payment, cell phone bill, consolidated credit card payment, and now an IRS bill is being issued because of her w-2 forms in the one year we filed jointly. I have learned since the divorce that she was seeing someone else whikle we were married, became pregnant while we were seperated and has now married them. The extra bills have left my finances extremely tight. Is there any course of action for me in order to make her help out with these bills even though my name is the only one on most of them? I do not want her help with the house or any living exspenses just the debt left behind.


Asked on 1/25/06, 1:35 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Michael Hendrickson Law Office Michael E. Hendrickson

Re: Debts after divorce

The time to have dealt with these debts and financial issues was when the property settlement agreement(PSA)was being drawn up and then signed by the parties, one of which was presumably you. If the final decree has already issued, it's now too late to address these ancillary financial matters.

From the facts that you've provided, I sense that you were not represented by an attorney in your divorce and now as a consequence you will have to "pay the piper", so to speak, for, perhaps, trying to save a few bucks by not engaging the services of counsel and thinking that you could handle matters on your own without such legal assistance.

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Answered on 1/25/06, 4:27 pm
Fred Kaufman Fredrick S. Kaufman, Esquire

Re: Debts after divorce

Any bills that she might be responsible for because she contracted for the services or used the services can be litigated in small claims court. Any debt that you wanted her held accountble for because it was a marital debt HAD to be dealt with in the divorce court or not at all. If the divorce is final and you have not dealt with that part, it is too late now.

Good luck

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Answered on 1/25/06, 10:42 pm


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