Divorce Support Forums: STBX creating debt prior to filing

His spending spree is probably marital debt, just like the stuff he spent it on it probably marital property. And the stuff that was in YOUR house that he didn't take to furnish his own was probably mostly marital property.

Think of it this way. He has to live SOMEWHERE with SOME bed, SOME sheets, SOME pillows, SOME dishes. And by sending him off, obviously without that stuff, you tacitly gave him permission to get some. Now, if you have given him half the stuff in the house and he went off to buy a bunch more, then ... well, it's the same story but at least your position is somewhat more sympathetic.

I don't know which way it went, but that's the way it generally works.

NOW, the otehr thing. I dont' know why people wait so long to file. It doesnt take that much to just get the paperwork started, which is the thing that signals the end of this. My husband, after he left his ex, he waited so long to file that she emptied the accounts, took all his air miles to put together a long luxury vacation for herself & the kids, took his entire paycheck, and when his annual bonus arrived, she took THAT as well. She bought new cars for herself and one of the kids, and generally INCREASED their lifestyle within weeks of his leaving. He should have filed immediately, but he was mistaken in understanding that all that needed to ahppen was they needed to finish thier negotiations and then file and it'd be over.

If he had filed immediately, the two of them would have had abotu $30,000 more to split when all was said and done (EVEN IF she had continued to litigate the heck out of the case and refuse to agree to anything and use lawyers for the tiniest little thing, as she did)... JUST the wacked out spending within the first few weeks of the split made that much of a difference.

And his is not the only situation I've ever heard of this happening. I've heard of a lot of situations where, knowing that a divorce was on the way, one of the partners decided to use it as an excuse for one last spending spree on the joint accounts and pay the piper later. SO much of a better thing to just get the paperwork filed and prevent this!

Since he's done it already, seems like maybe you need to be asking for half of his new furnishings in exchange for paying half of that debt, unless of course he is willing to re-title the debt entirely in his own name!