California Family Code § 914: Spousal Liability for Necessaries of Life Debts

Plain-Language Summary

Under California Family Code § 914, each spouse is personally responsible for certain debts the other incurs during marriage if those debts are for the “necessaries of life.” In practice, this means if one spouse buys food, pays for housing, medical care, or other basic needs for the family, the other spouse can be held liable for that debt as well. The statute distinguishes between debts incurred before the couple separates and those incurred after separation. A debt is covered if it was for necessaries of life before the date of separation; or, if after separation, it must be for “common necessaries of life” (i.e. mutually needed expenses). Notably, a spouse’s separate property (assets owned individually) can be used to pay these debts, but the paying spouse has a right to reimbursement if community property or the other spouse’s assets were available to pay instead. In a nutshell: the law makes spouses each responsible for the other’s basic-life expenses incurred during marriage, but it also provides ways (through agreements or divorce orders) for the parties to limit that liability. For example, after divorce any unpaid necessaries debt will generally only remain the former spouse’s responsibility if the divorce decree specifically assigned that debt to them.

Real-World Examples

Medical Expenses: Imagine a husband is hospitalized while the couple is still married. Under § 914, the wife could be held liable for his hospital bill because medical care is a necessary of life. If she uses her own separate savings to pay it, she later can seek reimbursement from community property if available.
Housing or Utilities: Suppose the couple lives together and the husband falls ill. The wife takes out a loan to pay for home mortgage or utilities during his illness. Those payments may be considered necessaries of life, so the husband could be jointly liable for that debt under § 914.
Post-Separation Necessities: After the spouses separate, certain costs can still bind the non-debtor spouse if they are “common necessaries.” For example, if after separation the husband must buy extra medicine for both spouses’ benefit, the wife might still be responsible for her share. (By contrast, if she had already received her divorce decree, she could avoid liability if the decree didn’t assign the debt to her.)

Published Case Law on § 914

Collection Bureau of San Jose v. Rumsey (2000) 24 Cal.4th 301, 6 P.3d 713 – California Supreme Court. The Court confirmed that Family Code § 914 makes a spouse “personally liable” for debts incurred by the other spouse for necessaries of life. It also emphasized that if the non-debtor spouse uses separate property to pay such debts, that spouse has a right to reimbursement from any available community or spouse’s assets.
CMRE Financial Services, Inc. v. Parton (2010) 184 Cal.App.4th 263, 108 Cal.Rptr.3d 599 – California Court of Appeal, Fourth District. In this case the court explained that after a divorce (§ 916), a former spouse is only liable for the other’s debts if the divorce judgment assigns that debt to them. Even though § 914 ordinarily would make a wife liable for her husband’s hospital bills, the court held that the dissolution judgment relieved her of liability because those debts weren’t assigned to her.
Robertson v. Willis (1978) 77 Cal.App.3d 358, 143 Cal.Rptr. 523 – California Court of Appeal, Second District. The court held that even though the husband’s business debt could be paid from community property, the wife was not personally liable for it under the facts. In other words, the mere fact that community assets might cover a husband’s debt did not, by itself, create personal liability for his wife.

Full Text of California Family Code § 914

(a) Notwithstanding Section 913, a married person is personally liable for the following debts incurred by the person’s spouse during marriage:

(1) A debt incurred for necessaries of life of the person’s spouse before the date of separation of the spouses.

(2) Except as provided in Section 4302, a debt incurred for common necessaries of life of the person’s spouse after the date of separation of the spouses.

(b) The separate property of a married person may be applied to the satisfaction of a debt for which the person is personally liable pursuant to this section. If separate property is so applied at a time when nonexempt property in the community estate or separate property of the person’s spouse is available but is not applied to the satisfaction of the debt, the married person is entitled to reimbursement to the extent such property was available.

(c) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the statute of limitations set forth in Section 366.2 of the Code of Civil Procedure shall apply if the spouse for whom the married person is personally liable dies. (2) If the surviving spouse had actual knowledge of the debt prior to expiration of the period set forth in Section 366.2 and the personal representative of the deceased spouse’s estate failed to provide the creditor asserting the claim under this section with a timely written notice of the probate administration of the estate in the manner provided for pursuant to Section 9050 of the Probate Code, the statute of limitations set forth in Section 337 or 339, as applicable, shall apply.

(d) A surviving spouse’s liability for the debts described in subdivisions (a) and (b) is subject to the surviving spouse’s right of reimbursement set forth in Section 920.

This content is provided for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Laws and their interpretations can change, and how the law applies to your specific situation may vary. For advice regarding your own circumstances, consult a qualified attorney.