RobertGoddard
New Member
Hi!
My father in law owes money to a number of casinos in Atlantic City – he lived in NY. All the debt was accrued between 2003 and probably 2009. He refused to pay them back, I don't know why. Even more extreme is that, to prevent them from taking money from him, he took his name off of pretty much everything. Banks, most of their credit cards, even the cell phone bill was all put into his wife's name or had his name simply removed. He was 'off the grid' financially. His only income was social security, which the lawyers could not touch.
He passed away a few weeks ago, at the age of seventy. He had no investment accounts and no vehicles in his name so he never felt he need a will.
A few months ago, while he was in the hospital before he passed, he received a letter from the lawyers of one of the casino's. The letter states that the casino obtained a judgment which is valid twenty years and will accrue interest at nine percent.
Yesterday he received a letter from the only credit card in his name, which has a zero balance. The gist of that letter is that they were subpoenaed to give all his information to the lawyers trying to get money on behalf of a casino. That letter said he had until June 14th to respond.
Obviously we haven't yet told the lawyers trying to collect that he passed away. Mostly that is because of our biggest concern, which is that the lawyers will find a way to burden my mother in law with his debt.
So.
Does my mother in law have any worries? Can they force her to sell "his" possessions to pay the debts? Do the casino's lawyers have any grounds against the widow, or are they simply out of luck, case closed, since he passed away?
Thanks for any advice or information!
My father in law owes money to a number of casinos in Atlantic City – he lived in NY. All the debt was accrued between 2003 and probably 2009. He refused to pay them back, I don't know why. Even more extreme is that, to prevent them from taking money from him, he took his name off of pretty much everything. Banks, most of their credit cards, even the cell phone bill was all put into his wife's name or had his name simply removed. He was 'off the grid' financially. His only income was social security, which the lawyers could not touch.
He passed away a few weeks ago, at the age of seventy. He had no investment accounts and no vehicles in his name so he never felt he need a will.
A few months ago, while he was in the hospital before he passed, he received a letter from the lawyers of one of the casino's. The letter states that the casino obtained a judgment which is valid twenty years and will accrue interest at nine percent.
Yesterday he received a letter from the only credit card in his name, which has a zero balance. The gist of that letter is that they were subpoenaed to give all his information to the lawyers trying to get money on behalf of a casino. That letter said he had until June 14th to respond.
Obviously we haven't yet told the lawyers trying to collect that he passed away. Mostly that is because of our biggest concern, which is that the lawyers will find a way to burden my mother in law with his debt.
So.
Does my mother in law have any worries? Can they force her to sell "his" possessions to pay the debts? Do the casino's lawyers have any grounds against the widow, or are they simply out of luck, case closed, since he passed away?
Thanks for any advice or information!
