It's common for divorcing couples to have credit card debt that must be assigned to one spouse or the other during the divorce judgment. What is often left out however, is protection for each spouse for not being held responsible for any additional credit card debt incurred by the other person - or from having to pay off the credit card debt assigned to the other spouse in the event the spouse doesn't pay their share of the joint credit card debt.
Are you surprised that this is a possibility? Creditors are not obligated to respect the terms of your divorce judgment when it comes to payments. If you were married when the debt was created, they are legally able to come after you for the payment if it is not paid, even if the divorce judgment assigned that particular debt to your spouse. Prior to meeting with your lawyer to assign debts, it is recommended that you obtain a credit report for each of you to make sure there are no credit cards or accounts opened that one of you are not aware of, to ensure they are assigned appropriately during the judgment.
How to Cut off Liability for Future Debt
For all credit cards that have both your names on the accounts, you should either close the accounts entirely so that they can no longer be used, or at a minimum remove your name from the accounts that your spouse will continue to use. Removing your name from the account will not relieve you of responsibilities for debts incurred prior to the divorce, but if the spouse goes on to add more debts to the account after the divorce, you will not be held liable for those debts.
If you fail to remove your name from any joint account that is going to be used by your ex after the divorce, the payments (or lack of payments) will be reported on your credit report as well as your spouse - and you will be equally responsible for payments, interest, penalties and any legal fees resulting from the use of that card.
Protect Yourself From Future Financial Problems
One method of further protecting yourself is to insist that any joint account that will be held by your spouse after a divorce be refinanced. This is often as simple as applying for a new card in just one person's name, and then transferring the balance. The money transferred from the old account to the new account is now the legal responsibility of the person who was assigned that debt in the divorce. If they fail to pay it - it will not fall back on the other person.