ex-wife still charging on accounts he didn't know about

My boyfriend divorced his ex-wife over 6 years ago. We're trying to buy a home together and through his credit report, we found out she had opened accounts in both of their names (with her as the primary) while they were married. During the divorce, she never divulged that these accounts existed. In the last year or two she has been using the accounts and now there's a $6000 balance. #1 is he responsible for the debt since she charged it after the divorce? #2 we don't believe she's going to have his name removed from the account even though he told her to - how can he make sure this happens? #3 can he have this removed from his credit report since they were opened without his knowledge, never disclosed during the divorce and all of the activity was after the divorce? #4 can this be reported as fraud somehow if it gets to that point? We are desperate for help. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Sounds like this situation needs to be handled in court. I don't know if this should be taken back to family court where the divorce took place or to civil court. You will want to consult an attorney in your state for this answer.

Typically debts acquired after the seperation or in this case divorce are that spouses separate property so I'm almost positive that he would not be responsible for the debt. The problem is with letting the credit reporting agencies know this. And this will probably require proof of a successful lawsuit.

When this does goes to court you will want the judge to order the ex to remove his name from the account and if she refuses to impose sanctions for not complying with the court order. Once a judgment is awarded in your favor you will want to contact the credit agencies and most likely have to provide them with a certified copy of the judgment.

As for fraud, this will be the basis for your lawsuit. She must have obtained his signature without his consent or forged it herself.

I don't know how long this whole process will take. Cleaning up the credit report is timely and sometimes difficult but I believe that the lawsuit against the ex is where this needs to start. Good luck.