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The issue is whether you live in a community property state or a common law state.
However, according to Pollock, debt that is in just one person's name in a common law state could still be considered the responsibility of both spouses "if the debt is related to what are considered marital expenses".
It further went on to note that if a couple had been considered married in a common law state and moved to another state, they were still considered married and eligible to file a joint tax return even if their new state did not recognize common law marriage.
If you are married, it is important that you determine whether you live in a community property or common law state before you write your will.
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Even worse, if the money in the joint account was hers (she earned it all or inherited it) and she lives in one of the nation's 41 common law states, she can't disclaim it.
"Most states are common law states," said Alison Norris, a certified financial planner at SoFi.
In addition, Norris said, "In about half of the common law states, a creditor cannot go after certain joint property to pay the separate debts of one spouse".
Legal systems within Europe range from common law states (England and Wales, Ireland, Malta, Cyprus), to French style civil law states, German style civil law states and Scandinavian legal systems, to former Soviet Union states and one state, Turkey, with some influence from Islamic legal culture.
In most common law states, property passes through the state's intestacy laws to the decedent's spouse and heirs.
In common law states, a surviving spouse is not entitled to a one-half interest in all property acquired during marriage.
However, common law states still protect a surviving spouse from complete disinheritance, usually by guaranteeing that he receive at least one third of the deceased spouse's property.
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