Adventures in Bad Credit 

As husband and wife, my ex and I had totally merged our piddling assets and financial liabilities. At the time, I had no more credit or credit cards, so his name didn't really get on any of my stuff. But he had several credit cards that he added me on to as an authorized user. We also had a couple of joint banks accounts (usually empty anyway). 

Then we had some trouble and cards were not getting paid. His debt was growing and by the time we got a divorce, he was in the hole for a good ten grand. He also tried to put in the divorce papers that it was my fault (eh). My attorney warned that he could possibly use that later to sue me, but that never happened (whew!). 

I was pissed off that he tried to stick all that on me. I never used his credit, and if I did, I was the one to pay it off. I think he never pursued any action against me because he knew this. What-ever!!!

Slowly but surely, after the divorce, my credit (which had been mediocre on a good day, non-existant on a bad one) started to improve. I watched my credit score rise and I made sure to pay bills on time and not get in over my head. I used my credit responsibly and it was paying off. 

One day, a couple years after my divorce, I noticed a negative mark on my credit report. One of my ex husband's creditors had added one of his charged-off credit card accounts to my credit report. I was furious. I hadn't even been a joint account holder, and it had never been there before, messing up my good credit score! I filed a dispute with the credit bureau reporting that travesty, and they removed it from my credit report completely and within a few weeks!

So my advice is to keep an eye on your credit after a divorce, even years later. It is prudent to check your score and report frequently; there are many reputable companies offering unlimited access to your credit file for a low monthly fee. I use Truecredit (from TransUnion) and pay about $15 per month for unlimited reports and scores from all three bureaus. It's awesome, and I recommend it fully. (http://www.truecredit.com)

Take it from me, don't sit back and relax when it comes to your credit. I cringe to think about all the divorcees out there, sitting at home blissfully unaware that years after the fact, crap from your ex can and will show up in your file. Be proactive; you should be keeping tabs on your credit anyway in these times of insane identity thiefs.