re: Just got dealt a low hand (wife's old CC from 5 years ago)

If you want to advise the OP to commit financial suicide then SURE advise him to pay debt to a company that has absolutely nothing to do with the lender that provided the credit to his wife.

I thought this board was on the level of banking intelligence where advise is sought on what is best for the OP. Leave all the other BS to the OT.

What is best for the OP is to not only not pay it but to not touch it with a 10000 foot pole.

Anyone advising the OP to pay this debt really has no clue about credit reporting FCRA or debt collections practice in general to make an competent argument here.

There is a purpose to having SOL laws in this country. The Bank that lent the money is OK with the debt going unpaid. Otherwise they would have sued in the correct time period and trust me they didn't just forget inside the SOL. They made a business decision to not pursue.

What happened to the OP is that the credit issuing bank charged off the debt most likely and then did not pursue. Its off their books. They then sold it to a debt collection agency knowing it cannot be collected on. That agency literally paid pennies for the debt in hope of collecting just something from the OP and has ZERO intent or care to make sure the OP's wife's credit is not harmed in the process of re-aging the debt. They just want to make a quick buck.