We are in the process of divorce now. I lent my money to him during our marriage that I earned before I married him, there is a piece of paper that he stated ___'s responsibility, $......... , I agree to pay back this amount, it has his signature and date,too. What possibility that Judge order him to repay ? Does judge see what he spent that money for to to make decision ? It is about $35,000.
The answer to your question is not clear cut. The "note" that your husband signed may or may not be an enforceable promissory note in a civil suit against your husband, if all that it stated is what you said in your question. The money that you lent to your husband was your separate property. In a divorce case, the Judge will likely want to know what your husband used the money for, in order to decide whether to order your husband to repay the loan, and if so, whether repayment should be from the community or from your husband's separate property - or his share of the community property. If you seek repayment of the loan from your husband in your divorce case and lose on that issue, you might not be able to litigate that issue in a civil court due to Res Judicata (a matter once litigated cannot be relitigated).
George Baker RichardsonFamily Law AttorneyPalo Alto, CA ·
There are several important facts that you will want to review with a lawyer. If your husband agrees that the money came from your separate property, then he may simply agree to reimburse you. However, if he does not agree, you need to be able to show, preferably with your bank statements or other financial records, that the $$ were yours before marriage. You also need to show how the $$ were spent. Did they go to buy a particular asset? Or go to meeting your every day expenses, etc. In addition, even if he reimburses you, you and he need to determine if the reimbursement comes out of his separate property or his share of the community property after division, or his share of the community property before division. The answer to that question could well depend on how the $$ were used, also.
You need to talk with an experienced family law attorney to assist you. You can consult with a lawyer about your question for little or no cost through a lawyer referral service in your area. You can find your nearest lawyer referral service by clicking on the link below.
You need to consult with an attorney to review all the relevant facts related to the "loan" and the overall financial information related to the marriage. Issues such as this are seldom viewed in a vacuum.
