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About Mark J. Markus- California Bankruptcy Attorney
Expertise
Mark J. Markus is a Los Angeles attorney who has practiced exclusively bankruptcy law in California since 1991 and is rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau. He represents debtors, creditors, and Trustees in Chapter 7, Chapter 11, and Chapter 13 of the bankruptcy code throughout California.

Experience
Visit http://www.bklaw.com for more information on bankruptcy in general and Mark J. Markus in particular. Many questions are answered on the web page (hint, hint).
The Markus webpage also contains more information on
business bankruptcy,
chapter 7 bankruptcy,
chapter 11 bankruptcy,
chapter 13 bankruptcy,
Frequently Asked Bankruptcy Questions

Also visit our new bankruptcy blog for interesting articles and much more.

Education/Credentials
J.D., University of Arizona 1990. B.A. Economics, California State University, Northridge 1986. For more details please click here

You are here: Experts > Business > Corporate Law > Bankruptcy Law > Ch 7 bk

Bankruptcy Law - Ch 7 bk

Expert: Mark J. Markus- California Bankruptcy Attorney - 10/29/2009

Question
QUESTION: I live in a community property state, WA. My wife and I just got married in February. I am filing for ch. 7 bankruptcy because of some debts I acquired prior to meeting/marrying my wife. I do not have a bank acct, but my wife does (less than $1k in it and I'm not on it). The only communal debt/communal asset we have is a car she bought in her name after we were married. She owes $10,000, it's worth $12,000. On schedules B & C of the bankruptcy papers, I'm not sure what I am suppose to list with regard to her bank acct, car and personal belongings (ie-wedding ring, shoes etc). I was told that I do not have to count any of her assets if she acquired them prior to our marriage in Feb.

ANSWER: That's incorrect. You don't have to list any assets she acquired PRIOR to getting married, but anything she acquired afterwards is community property, including income, and must be listed.

http://www.bklaw.com/

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks you for your reply.

Would I have to list her checking account then if it was hers prior to our marriage and has less than the $200 allowed maximum? I'd prefer to leave her out of this as much as possible.

Thanks again,

Travis

Answer
If no money has been deposited into her account since you got married, then you can probably leave it off, but you should really check with an attorney in Washington to make sure it is actually her separate property.

Perhaps more relevant is, why not just list it if there's only $200 in it? Are you beyond the exemption limit for personal property?

To see more on exemptions, visit http://www.bklaw.com/exemptions.html

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