Gina, I was hoping that some knowledgeable person would answer this for you. Maybe my answer will bring it out again and someone who knows more than I do can better help answer this more succinctly. I'm not a complete dummy, though, and this is my understanding regarding this scenario. Laws will vary from state to state, but if you were actually legally married and not just partners AND you live in a community property state, any debt incurred during the course of the marriage is usually considered joint debt. So, if your husband died owing on a loan, even if his name alone was on it, you would be still be liable for that debt. It is usually a different story if you're talking about debt incurred before the marriage, such as student loan, for example. In my state, a spouse is not responsible for a deceased spouse's loan if they were not married at the time the loan was granted. However, there are also caveats to that scenario. If the spouse left any kind of an estate behind, such as a life insurance policy, the debt will usually be required to be paid out of those monies before the spouse gets anything. As I said, this will vary from state to state, so it's really impossible to say for sure what your laws are. If you weren't legally married, then usually the partner will incur no debt of the deceased so long as the partner didn't co-sign on any of the loans. The below quote is from the state of Maryland. This is their policy on debt: "Am I liable for the debts of my partner? Not unless you have specifically undertaken responsibility to pay a particular debt -- for example, as a cosigner or if the debt is charged to a joint account. By contrast, husbands and wives are generally liable for all debts incurred during marriage, even those incurred by the other person. The one exception for unmarried couples applies if you have registered as domestic partners in a city where the domestic partner ordinance states that you agree to pay for each other's "basic living expenses" (food, shelter and clothing)." I hope this helps!

I'm not a "legal-beagle" and have never inherited anything but headaches, but from what I've experienced so far is that any legal debts incurred by the deceased are not ordinarily voided by death. There is still an obligation on the estate. If I were you I would get some qualified professional advice. Good luck!!!!!