“The pound of flesh which I demand of him Is deerely bought, 'tis mine, and I will have it.” So demanded Shylock from Antonio. This is derived from Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, 1596. The insistence by Shylock of the payment of Antonio's flesh is the central plot even in today’s trades and transactions.

Creditors, often without failure– are quick to demand their pound of flesh when credit advanced is due. This article seeks to address this aspect in a marriage setting and consider what options are available.

Good credit is synonymous to financial power. It helps people to get the things they want and need instantly, like a loan for a car or a credit card, based on the promise to pay later. Working to improve your credit helps ensure you'll qualify for loans when you need them.

This is often the case with married couples. Often it is easier to get credit as a couple compared to as an individual. The reason is perhaps obvious, two people can pull resources together and settle credit. It is perhaps one of the reasons why many couples are in so much debt and the statistics across the spectrum indication that the main reason for divorce is finances.

As much as obtaining credit is good, the opposite is true. If being in debt goes unchecked, it can break a person as well as their prospect of obtaining credit to cover their needs. This often results in a total emasculation of financial power, really a sad situation.

How can married couple use their marriage status to their advantage when applying for credit, and what can they do to ensure that their financial power is never compromised?

MARRIAGE INSTITUTION AND FINANCES

When people get married in community of property, they automatically become liable for their spouses’ liabilities. Creditors can choose both or either, when demanding their pound of flesh. This means debts that where incurred before and during the subsistence of the marriage.

Then, what happens when a couple divorces? After all, each person took debts in their own name. Fact of the matter is, by virtue of your marriage in community of property, the two of you are liable for such debts. There are some legal exceptions of course, the discussion of which does not fall within the scope of this article.

Another classical situation is debt relief. It often happens that couples are overly indebted and cannot manage their affairs, one or both spouses would recommend that they seek debt relief, be placed under administration of debt review. When parties are married in community of property, for such debt relief to take place, both parties must be placed under the judicial administration or debt review. The effect of which is that, neither spouse can get more credit and their names get listed with various credit bureaus as a bar.

It often becomes interesting when such people for some reason(s) decide to get divorced. Can they now as independent and in their single status apply for credit? To the extent that they were placed under debt review and if they are still owing the creditors, the bar shall remain in force. One can only imagine how bad such situation is-a divorcee failing to access much needed credit and being completely financially emasculated, just because of their decision and consequences of their marriage in community of property.

MARRIAGE OUT OF COMMUNITY OF PROPERTY (ANC)

When couples get married, to maintain their financial independence, they must conclude an ante nuptial contract. The contract regulates, mainly, the financial relationship of the couple as well as how third parties and creditors deal with each spouse.

In short, people married out of community of property can maintain their own independent financial power. They sort of benefit from both statuses. As a couple, they can apply for credit jointly to some extent, and they also benefit in that when they divorce, their spouses’ poor financial decisions and or financial misconduct will not have much impact of their own financial power. They can still apply for credit and continue with their lives.

The arrangement and conclusion of an Antenuptial Contract (ANC) is there for the taking. Based on considerations discussed in this article, it may be best for people to earnestly consider the benefits of concluding an ante nuptial contract. One should seek advice from a lawyer qualified as a notary public for assistance and information regarding ante nuptial contracts– by so doing, one can avoid having to tender a pound of flesh for debts and financial misconduct caused by another person.

Reference List:

• Divorce Act 70 of 1979.
• National Credit ACT 34 of 2005.