There are a number of legal factors that need to be taken into account in a bankruptcy situation.
A typical example is if there is still jointly owned property. In a divorce the courts have very wide discretion.
If her husband went bankrupt after the divorce and any financial order by the court, then this should not affect your client. The law will not hold a wife responsible for her husband’s bankruptcy unless she was a party to his financial dealings. If the husband went bankrupt during the marriage and the parties jointly owned their house then it is a different picture. The husband’s trustee in bankruptcy has a duty to realise any assets of the husband and can ask the court to enforce a sale of jointly owned property to try to realise some cash for the husband’s creditors. The courts are reluctant to order a sale of property if that makes the wife homeless and therefore often, if possible, a better arrangement is for the wife to buy the trustees’ interest out.
The wife’s credit rating should not be affected in any way.
Edward Goldsmith
