Debt Responsibility

The estate is responsible for the decedent's debts. One of the primary reasons someone should open an estate is to resolve such debts. The estate has to pay off the debts. If the estate cannot do so, they distribute as best they can. If the court approves the distribution, the debts are ended.

In South Dakota, the estate must resolve all debts including medical bills. Until that is done, the spouse cannot inherit anything.

In Missouri the estate will be primarily responsible. The spouse indirectly will pay, as they cannot inherit until the medical bills are resolved.

A responsible person is somebody who takes his own responsibility like:

The personal representative speaks for the estate and acts on its behalf. A beneficiary is someone that is expected to receive a bequest from the estate. They can be the same person.

No unless his name is on any debt or contract.

Talk with the people trying to collect and see if you can work something out. Or declare bankruptcy so the debts can be written off.

The debts of the deceased are the responsibility of the descesed's estate. The estate must resolve the debts before any money goes to the heirs. Consult a probate attorney in your jurisdiction for help.

From your question it would appear that your husband died without leaving any money or property, if this is the case then there would be no money available to settle debts. However, if your hsband and you shared ownwrship of your house then his half of the house would be liable to settle these debts. If you are in problems the best course of action is to see an attorney.

In the state of Ohio, as in most places the estate will be responsible. The spouse indirectly will pay, as they cannot inherit until they are resolved.

For Georgia, the estate will be responsible. The spouse indirectly will pay, as they cannot inherit until they are resolved.

If you are still legally married, you can be held responsible. That would be the benefit of getting a divorce.

You can see the answer to this if you imagine an amount of debt to be the whole estate. That is one heir is holding all the assets.

If the debt wasn't repaid first, before division, the other heir would get nothing at all.

The estate is the total after all debts have been repaid.

So you add the value of the debt to the residual estate. Give half of the result to the one with no debts.

This has the same effect as the debtor repaying a sum equal to half his debt to the non-debtor, and then dividing the existing estate by 2.

Debts of the spouse are considered to have benefited both of them. He can be held responsible for the debts.

In most cases they will be held responsible. The spouse is considered to have benefited from the debt.

You should ask the attorney who is handling the estate. If it is a small estate there may not be any tax consequences either way.

Depending on the jurisdiction, the executors might be liable. I would urge legal advice.

The executor's duty is to apply the deceased's assets, to the extent that it is possible towards meeting the deceased's liabilities. In the even of insufficient funds, after funeral and testamentary expenses - typically costs incurred post mortem, the outstanding bills are paid pro rata. The heirs, especially dependent spouses and children would get nothing.

Effective estate planning would reduce the possibility of dependents being left high and dry.

no

The heirs aren't the persons with the authority to "handle" an estate at all. If a person died owning property their estate must be probated, an estate representative must be appointed and the debts of the estate must be paid before any property is distributed to the heirs. Probate laws govern the distribution of a decedent's estate regarding creditors and heirs. If the court appointed estate representative mishandles the estate they are held personally responsible.

If heirs convert assets to their own use, with or without the appointment of an estate representative, the "heirs" are held personally responsible and may find themselves in court for taking the decedent's property and not paying the creditors and/or the other heirs.

Like most places, Connecticut has the estate resolve debts. The spouse will indirectly pay, as they cannot inherit until they are resolved.

No - the FDCPA mandates that collections can only be performed against the debt holder. If any collection agency contacts you and says you are liable, record the phone call (get permission if your state requires it), and contact a lawyer. If they're going after debt that is not yours, and telling you details of the debt, they are violating FDCPA all over the place and you can attempt to sue for $1000 per violation. An attorney can help you out in this situation.

If the child is a minor, yes, they are. If the child is an adult, no, they are not.

The estate is responsible for the descendant's debts, including promissory notes. It is the primary reasons to open an estate is to resolve such debts. The estate has to pay off the debts. If the estate cannot do so, they distribute as best they can. If the court approves the distribution, the debts are ended.

The spouse indirectly will pay, as they cannot inherit until they are resolved. In Maryland the estate is responsible.