If the husband took out a mortgage without the consent of his wife, and the wife did not act as a co-borrower or guarantor for the loan, the transaction can be challenged in court, – Olga Epifanova, senator and arbitration director of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation, told socialbites.ca.
“You can file a lawsuit to declare the transaction invalid (according to the provisions of the RF IC and the RF Civil Code). To reduce the risk of debt, you need to keep all checks, documents, correspondence between spouses, witness statements. It is important to keep copies of documents confirming the purpose of using credit funds,” the senator said.
According to him, if a bank demands the transfer of money to pay off a spouse’s debt without a court decision, you can complain to the prosecutor’s office about the unlawful actions of the credit institution’s employees.
Epifanova added that there is another way for your own “excuse”: to notarize a gift contract (with the registered consent of the spouse) to one or more close relatives regarding property acquired during the marriage. Thus, there is a chance to avoid collection of past marital debts, the senator explained.
“Of course, it is always unpleasant to learn that someone took out a large mortgage loan behind your back, which was not mutual. Of course, a lot depends on the characteristics of the relationship in marriage. But still, if a woman wants not to risk her business, it would be logical to draw up a marriage contract, which stipulates the conditions under which each spouse will manage his property separately,” the expert advised.
According to her, it is useful to specify the balance of payments for the mortgage contract. In this case, the senator explained, it will be possible to protect yourself from possible losses in the event of a possible divorce. Epifanova added that the marriage contract must be certified by a notary, otherwise the document will be considered invalid. Epifanova noted that it is important that its terms do not violate the rights of the other party, otherwise such an agreement may be declared invalid in court.
Before that, the senator talked about whether it was worth paying off the mortgage early.
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