How Is Debt Divided in a Florida Divorce?

The Default Rule: Marital Debts Are Divided Like Assets

Under Florida Statute § 61.075, debts follow the same equitable distribution framework as assets. Any liability incurred by either spouse during the marriage is presumptively marital, regardless of whose name is on the account. The court allocates marital debts between the spouses based on the same statutory factors used for assets — each party's economic circumstances, the duration of the marriage, and the contributions each made.

Debts incurred before the marriage are generally nonmarital and stay with the spouse who took them on.

The Rule That Catches Everyone Off Guard

A divorce decree can assign a joint debt to one spouse. But the creditor — the credit card company, the mortgage lender, the auto loan servicer — is not a party to your divorce. They did not agree to release the other spouse from the contract.

If the assigned spouse stops paying, the creditor can legally pursue the other spouse, send the account to collections, and report the delinquency on their credit report. The divorce decree does not change this. The judge's order is binding on the two spouses but not on the lender.

This is the single most dangerous gap in Florida divorce law for self-represented filers. Relying on a divorce decree to protect you from a joint debt is like relying on a letter you wrote to yourself.

How Common Debts Are Classified and Handled

Credit cards: marital if incurred during the marriage for household benefit, even if only one spouse's name is on the card. The safest approach is to close all joint credit card accounts as soon as the petition is filed and transfer balances to individual cards. This ensures each spouse is solely liable to the issuer for their assigned portion.

Mortgages: the mortgage follows the house. If one spouse keeps the home, they must refinance into their sole name to release the other from liability. Until the refinance closes, both spouses remain on the hook. A quitclaim deed removes one spouse from the title but does nothing to the mortgage contract.

Auto loans: marital if the vehicle was acquired during the marriage. The spouse keeping the vehicle must refinance the loan individually. Alternatively, sell the vehicle and pay off the loan.

Student loans: generally nonmarital if taken out before the marriage. Student loans incurred during the marriage may be classified as marital if the education benefited the household — though this is often contested.

Medical bills: marital if incurred during the marriage for healthcare of a spouse or child. Elective cosmetic procedures are typically classified as the separate debt of the spouse who had the procedure.

Tax liabilities: jointly filed returns create joint and several liability under federal law. Both spouses are 100% liable to the IRS for the full amount, regardless of who earned the income or caused the underpayment. If fraud or underreporting by one spouse is involved, the other may qualify for Innocent Spouse Relief.

Indemnity Clauses: Important but Not Bulletproof

A well-drafted marital settlement agreement includes indemnity language for each assigned debt. An indemnity clause says: if I default on a debt assigned to me and the creditor comes after you, I must reimburse you for everything you pay, including attorney fees.

This gives you a legal mechanism to recover — but it is a mechanism for a lawsuit, not a shield. If the defaulting spouse is broke or declares bankruptcy, the indemnity clause is worthless in practice. You are left paying the creditor and suing an insolvent ex-spouse.

This is why pre-decree debt refinancing — converting every joint liability into individual accounts — is the only reliable protection.

The Forgery Exception

Under § 61.075(6)(b)5, debts incurred through forgery or unauthorized signature are classified as the sole nonmarital liability of the forging spouse. If your spouse opened a credit card in your name without your knowledge and ran up a balance, that debt is theirs alone.

You will need to prove the forgery — typically through handwriting analysis, testimony, or evidence that you did not authorize the account.

Protecting Yourself During the Process

Three steps you can take immediately after filing:

1. Pull your credit report from all three bureaus. Identify every joint account and every account in your name that you did not open.
2. Close or freeze joint credit lines to prevent new charges. Notify creditors in writing that you will not be responsible for future charges on joint accounts.
3. Document all balances as of the filing date. The filing date is typically the cut-off for classifying assets and liabilities. Charges made after that date are generally treated as the spending spouse's separate obligation.

The Florida Divorce Financial Split Guide includes a debt division planner that walks you through inventorying every liability, classifying it as marital or nonmarital, and building the protective language your settlement agreement needs.

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