Do You Have the Right to Access Your Spouse's Credit Records

[free9man]

You are in Texas, not California.

[Taxing Matters]

I don't think it would be fraud.

The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) prohibits a consumer reporting agency (CRA), which includes the credit bureaus, from releasing your wife's credit report to you without her consent. So if you ask the CRA for her credit report it should deny your request because she didn't authorize you to get that access. That would mean then that to get the report, you'd have to either impersonate your wife or forge her consent, and doing either of those things to get her credit report would be illegal.

[donaldj]

All debt in Texas is community property / community debt (if done after marriage). I have read that. So I might have legal right to know about the debt, but there is no direct way to get the info, except to ask. I assume if she left her credit card statement open on the table, it would not be illegal for me to read it. It is also illegal to open a spouse's mail, but 99.9% of spouses do that.

[jk]

All debt in Texas is community property / community debt (if done after marriage). I have read that. So I might have legal right to know about the debt, but there is no direct way to get the info, except to ask. I assume if she left her credit card statement open on the table, it would not be illegal for me to read it. It is also illegal to open a spouse's mail, but 99.9% of spouses do that.

You have no legal right to view her private information. You need to accept that.


Not all debt accrued during the marriage is community debt. It’s not that simple in Texas.

[donaldj]

This debt is. We are not talking about separate property or special community property. It is credit card debt for clothing, jewelry, vacations, college expenses.

[budwad]

Well, all my paycheck goes to pay our bills. All her paycheck goes to her fun. But I feel her credit card balances may be getting out of control. They did not invite me to join them on either vacation.

Are you saying that she pays her CC statements each month out of her own funds? Who's income is greater? Yours or hers?

This debt is. We are not talking about separate property or special community property. It is credit card debt for clothing, jewelry, vacations, college expenses..

If she should default on her payments and gets sued and a judgment against her is entered, your assets are indeed exposed for the creditor to go after.

Appellant relies on Section 3.201 of the Family Code in arguing that the trial court erred in ordering her to pay appellee's credit card debts. See TEX. FAM.CODE ANN. § 3.201 (Vernon 1998). Section 3.201 limits spousal liability for debts incurred during the marriage. However, appellant's argument fails to recognize the distinction between community liability for a debt and personal liability for a debt. See Cockerham, 374*374 527 S.W.2d at 171.[1] If a spouse is not personally liable for a debt, the creditor may not reach that spouse's separate property to satisfy the debt. TEX. FAM. CODE ANN. §§ 3.201-.202 (Vernon 1998). Unless it is shown that the creditor agreed to look solely to the separate estate of the contracting spouse for satisfaction, Section 3.201 has no effect on the long-standing presumption that debts contracted during the marriage are presumed to be on the credit of the community and, thus, are joint community obligations. See Cockerham, 527 S.W.2d at 171; Kimsey v. Kimsey, 965 S.W.2d 690, 702 (Tex.App.-El Paso 1998, pet. denied).

https://scholar.google.com/scholar_c...en&as_sdt=4,44

[cbg]

For the record, I am the one who first used the word, fraud, and I was responding to a post which is no longer there. In that post it was suggested that Donald divorce his wife but remain living with her so that she could (potentially fraudulently) remain on his health insurance. I was not accusing Donald of fraud.

What he wants to do is illegal, but not fraud.

[jk]

You still have no legal right to review your wife’s credit history or anything else she doesn’t wish to show to you. You can either accept that and deal with the consequences or divorce her and make yourself financially safe or do the best you can to shelter your assets and income.

Your argument about not wanting to abandon her in her time of need is simply lip service given what you state about your concern about how her financial decisions affect you. It’s obvious both legally and practically you cannot do what you want to do. Accept it or,change the relationship so you are financially protected.

[donaldj]

>Your argument about not wanting to abandon her in her time of need is simply lip service given what you state about your concern about how her financial decisions affect you.
A rather ridiculous response. Any intelligent person would have concern about their finances. You mention nothing about the wife who seems more concerned about vacationing than saving for her daughter's college expenses.

[jk]

>Your argument about not wanting to abandon her in her time of need is simply lip service given what you state about your concern about how her financial decisions affect you.
A rather ridiculous response. Any intelligent person would have concern about their finances. You mention nothing about the wife who seems more concerned about vacationing than saving for her daughter's college expenses.

You’re the one that appears to be more concerned about how your wife spends money and how it affects you rather than wanting her to enjoy what time she has left. You’re the one that said you would feel bad if you left her but that was due to her medical issues. That is lip service in practice.

if the only reason you are staying with her is because you would feel bad leaving her, your marriage is of such a poor condition that a divorce may be the healthier thing for you to do. She may welcome not being tied to a guy that has stated the only reason he stays is because he would feel bad if he left. Maybe you aren’t invited on vacations because you show more concern about how she spends her money than how she feels about her issues.

. you have shown a greater concern with how your wife spends her money and how it affects you than you have shown concern for your wife. You said you are staying, not because of how it would affect your wife but that you would feel guilty for leaving.

The fact that she has apparently decided her financial activities are none of your business speaks volumes to the health of the relationship. Why a married couple cannot sit down and have an open discussion about this issue also speaks to the condition of the relationship. Maybe it’s time for a “come to Jesus” meeting. Maybe she wouldn’t care if you left. Maybe she would prefer for you to leave. I’m guessing you really have no idea how she feels as you’ve shown, here, no concern for her but only how her actions might hurt you financially.

Regardless of all of that;

if you want to see your wife’s financial records, ask her. If she won’t show you willingly, then accept that or take the next step (divorce) where you can compel her to disclose them. Those are your choices.