Credit card debt often plays a significant role in divorce—both as a factor in the cause of the divorce and as an obstacle to dissolving the marriage, as responsibility for the debt must be agreed to by the divorcing spouses or determined by the court.

If the spouses live in a community property state (as opposed to a common law property/equitable distribution state) and the credit card was applied for and issued to only one of the spouses, the bank may only be able to seek payment from the spouse in whose name the card was issued and the credit was extended—but in resolving the divorce case, the court (judge) may order community property sold to pay the credit card debt, or may order the other spouse to pay the credit card debt. Community property states generally include Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Maryland is not a community property state; it is an equitable distribution state. This means that during a divorce, the court will divide marital property based on what is fair, but not necessarily equal. Credit card debt incurred during the marriage is typically considered marital debt and responsibility for it will be divided between the spouses as part of the divorce proceedings. The court will consider several factors to determine a fair division of debt, including each spouse's economic circumstances, the reasons for the debt, and who benefited from the debt. If the credit card was in one spouse's name only, the court may still consider the debt as marital if it was used for the benefit of the marriage. However, the creditor can usually only seek payment from the spouse who applied for and is named on the credit card, unless the other spouse is a joint account holder or has agreed to be responsible for the debt. It's important for individuals going through a divorce in Maryland to understand that the division of debt will be handled separately from the creditor's right to collect on that debt.