Phantom Discharge question

[Overmylimit]

I have been reading thru the previous posts about phantom discharge with Married couples. I filed and my Wife did not although she wishes now she would have. She only had 2 credit cards and a gas card, they were originally in her name and I was added as an authorized user. Since we live in California what can I do? still pay or tell them about me being discharged..

[MC9199]

They are still in her name, correct? Your bankruptcy and discharge have no effects on accounts not in your name, even if you are an authorized user.

[Overmylimit]

Yes still in her name

[NoMoreCards]

Being as you live in California and it is a community property state, this may be different.
I would recommend you ask your BK lawyer (assuming you used one), but I had thought if you filed, your wife was automatically included. I seriously do not know the answer to your question, but I do know community property states put a spin on how this normally works.

[Overmylimit]

True that's what I am trying to figure out, my Lawyer is out of town of course. I had read it works a little different here.

[HHM]

Since you were only an authorized user (not a cosigner) to begin with, those CC's in your wife's name were not part of of your BK since you were never contractually obligated to pay the debt (your wife is).

Phantom discharge only works for true "joint debts". If you were an authorized user, those CC's are NOT joint debts. Your wife is solely liable.

[Overmylimit]

Aha, there it is Ok that clears it up Thanks

[optimistic1]

I know this is an old thread, but phantom discharges actually do work, despite what HHM has posted, it worked perfectly for us, a creditor will lose hands down for community debt that was discharged without objection in a single filing case within a community property state, plain and simple. I have adjudicated cases in which the creditor lost all rights to sue me because of my spouses bk. It works people, dont let anyone tell you or scare you into disbelieving what hundreds of cases have shown. If you would like I can link the case law to prove it.

[HHM]

This thread is not about phantom discharges in general (which is legitimate in Community property states), it is about phantom discharge for non-joint debt of the non-filing spouse.

The narrow issue here is the non-filing spouses non-joint debt. In other words, the "individual" or "separate" debt of the non-filing spouse. The bankruptcy discharge (and phantom discharge) would NOT apply in that situation, at least that is how I understand it. The DEBT, in some manner, needs to be part of the BK. Phantom discharge works for the debt of the filing spouse and for "joint" debt. But the phantom discharge does not apply to the wholly separate debt of the non-filing spouse.

[optimistic1]

But you see that's just it, in most cases there is no separate debt for a non-filing spouse, its all debt of the community regardless of who's name is on the contract, and if its all listed and discharged, then the community receives the discharge and collectors have no right to obtain it from either, even if one spouse files. There is no such thing as non-joint debt in a community property state, in some comm. states you might even marry into a spouses pre marital debts, in others the law strictly prohibits the collection of them. Granted there is an argument if a spouse obtained credit to use it for non-community purposes, but in most cases it will never even get that far where a creditor is going to argue technicalities.

[LadyInTheRed]

I agree wit optomistic1 with some clarification. In CA, debt incurred by either spouse during marriage is community property debt. So all community property acquired after discharge is protected by either spouse's discharge and the discharge protects community property from creditors of the non filing spouse. However, if the non filing spouse has separate property, the creditor could collect against the separate property (i.e., acquired before marriage or by gift or inheritance).

Here are a couple of articles on the issue that are specific to California: http://www.moranlaw.net/CAtwists.htm http://www.moranlaw.net/maritaldebts.htm