Living Will and Outstanding Debts

Q. Good Morning...My father's health is slowly deteriorating, unfortunately. It's inevitable that one day he will leave us. He has a Living Will. My question is, as his children, will my brothers and I be held responsible to his creditors for any outstanding debts? Thank You for any information you can provide...


A. First, a Living Will has to do with what his end of life medical wishes are and has no effect on the settlement of his estate.

Second, his creditors can not come after the children unless the co-signed for the loan or were in some other way involved in the debt. If the debt is secured by an asset like a house or car, the creditors can file against the estate in an effort to get their money. If there isn't any money in the estate then there isn't anything to pay the creditors.

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