Bankruptcy After Divorce You've already been though a divorce and now you find out that your ex has also filed bankruptcy. How do you protect yourself and make sure that your divorce agreement is honored? When your spouse files a bankruptcy, there is an automatic stay that immediately prevents creditors from collecting on most debts. How Bankruptcy Affects Support Obligations Current child support, alimony and family support obligations continue whether or not someone files or completes a bankruptcy. Current insurance quotes refinancing debt consolidation insurance quotes refinancing debt consolidation support debts survive a bankruptcy without the receiving spouse having to go to bankruptcy court. Back support obligations are stayed during bankruptcy proceedings, but must be paid by the debtor before other debts owed to unsecured creditors and taxes. The spouse who is owed the back support should file a "proof of claim" with the bankruptcy court to receive payment. Bankruptcy and Property Settlements Debts related to a divorce property settlement are presumed to be "nondischargeable" in bankruptcy, meaning pennsylvania refinance mortgage insurance quotes refinancing debt consolidation that the person who files bankruptcy must be responsible for them. As a non-debtor receiving ex-spouse, you should file a complaint in bankruptcy court to get the property settlement debt excepted from discharge. If you don't file this proceeding with the bankruptcy court, the debt may be wiped out and you won't be able to collect it later. The bankruptcy court will wipe out debt if the person filing for bankruptcy can show that: he or she can't pay va refinance insurance quotes refinancing debt consolidation the debt and still take care of himself and any dependents, or that wiping out the debt would result in a benefit to the person filing the bankruptcy that outweighs any harm done to his or her former spouse or child by nonpayment. How do bankruptcy courts decide what's a support obligation and what's a property settlement? It varies greatly by state, but courts have based their decisions on such questions as: Does the obligation terminate or reduce with ohio bankruptcy laws insurance quotes refinancing debt consolidation the