28th September 2009
A surprisingly common scenario is as follows: You recently attended, and maybe even graduated from, a college or university that is now holding your transcript and other such official documents. Unfortunately, however, you have not been able to fulfill ...
28th September 2009
One of the biggest concerns in contemplating the filing of a Chapter 7 bankruptcy is how to go about reestablishing credit after the discharge is (hopefully) received and the bankruptcy case closed. Of particular importance is that the debtor regain the ...
01st July 2009
There is more than a grain of truth in the expression “fear of the unknown”. And where bankruptcy is concerned, a little trepidation is certainly understandable; after all, how many people are well versed with the procedures involved in a bankruptc...
01st July 2009
One of the trickier issues in filing an individual bankruptcy is how to handle the situation in which the debtor is married, but his or her petition is individual as opposed to joint, i.e. the spouse does not join in the bankruptcy filing. Of particular ...
03rd June 2009
Whether or not to reaffirm a secured debt, under §521(2)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code, used to be a no-brainer. Because the act of reaffirmation did far more for the creditor than it did for the debtor, the advice most commonly – and properly – given b...
03rd June 2009
In today’s difficult economic times, nothing sounds more alluring to someone overwhelmed with credit card debt than a program that purports to eliminate that debt, cheaply, easily, and without need of litigation or bankruptcy. Unfortunately, the purvey...
27th March 2009
Chapter 7, sometimes referred to as "straight", or "liquidation" bankruptcy, is designed for debtors in financial difficulty who do not have the present ability to pay their existing debts. With a Chapter 7 filing, debtors will almost invariably pay back...
27th March 2009
Think of credit cards as a double edged sword – while offering great convenience as well as many other advantages, credit cards can at the same time be very costly if used carelessly. That is, if you opt to carry a balance from month to month rather th...
06th March 2009
Much has been written about the ‘abuse’ section of The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. That section, 707(b), is the one that might well be referred to as the ‘teeth’ in that new bankruptcy law. Practitioners and ...
03rd March 2009
Ok. You’re considering filing for bankruptcy relief under Chapter 7 of the bankruptcy code. You may have heard about the ‘means test’ and how the US Trustee can file motions or complaints under Section 707(b) to dismiss a case or force it to be co...
30th January 2009
Many people are familiar with the most common categories of debts that may be discharged in Chapter 7 bankruptcy. These include credit card account balances, medical bills, old utility and phone bills, and unsecured personal loans. What are not so well ...
23rd January 2009
When a chapter 7 petition is filed, the U.S. trustee appoints a "disinterested" (that is, impartial) case trustee to administer the case and liquidate the debtor's nonexempt assets. Specifically, the trustee has the duty, under 11 U.S.C. §704(a)(1), to ...
21st January 2009
Federal and state bankruptcy laws reflect the public policy value that no one should be deprived of all of their property. The federal bankruptcy laws, as well as the state laws where you reside, therefore, both allow for certain "exemptions." Federal e...
21st January 2009
When you file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition, the means test is applied to make sure that you really need to file bankruptcy and that you aren’t “abusing” the system. That might sound confusing, but it’s in most cases a simple test, and the major...
16th January 2009
The average American knows very little about bankruptcy. Most people probably understand very generally that a bankruptcy can serve to eliminate debt and offer a ‘fresh start’ – but often know very little beyond this basic concept. Some of the infor...
