If you’re going through a divorce and you intend to file for bankruptcy afterwards, you may be required to disclose your intentions to your spouse. A recent case found a debtor’s divorce related debts such as alimony non-dischargeable because he failed to disclose his intention to file for bankruptcy. The case, filed in the Southern District of Texas found that the debtor entered into alimony settlement negotiations with the full intention of filing for bankruptcy afterwards. The court found that the debtor’s silence about his intentions constituted false representation; therefore the bankruptcy court would not discharge the alimony debt in bankruptcy. The debtor may have alleviated this situation by revealing his bankruptcy intentions and negotiating a lower or lump sum alimony settlement.
