How is marital debt distributed?

In New York, marital debt refers to any financial obligations that were incurred during the marriage, such as loans, credit card debt, and medical bills. When couples divorce, this debt must be divided between them. The first step in distributing marital debt is for each party to list all the debts they acquired during the marriage. This list should include the names of the creditors and the amount of each debt. The court will then decide how the debt should be divided between the parties. Generally, the court will divide the debt equitably, which means the debt will be divided in a way that is fair and just. New York law states that marital debt should be divided according to the contributions each party made to the debt. This means that each party will be responsible for the debts that they were primarily responsible for paying. For example, if a husband and wife both acquired credit card debt during the marriage, but the wife was primarily responsible for paying those bills, then she will be responsible for the majority of the debt. The court can also consider the incomes of each party when distributing marital debt. If one spouse has a much higher income than the other, the court can order that party to pay a greater portion of the debt. This helps prevent an unfair burden from being placed on one party. Ultimately, it is up to the court to decide how the marital debt will be divided. The court will take into consideration all the circumstances when deciding how the debt should be distributed fairly.

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