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It’s a common thought that if you file bankruptcy, the Judge or Trustee will get angry and yell at you. Definitely not true! First, in the normal case, you will like not appear before an actual Bankruptcy Court Judge. Instead, you will appear before a Bankruptcy Trustee, who is the court official responsible for conducting the mandatory Section 341 Meeting … Read More

When I last wrote about Chapter 13 plans, I spoke about the fact that in the Bankruptcy Court of Western Pennsylvania (Western District), I mentioned that all secured debt payments (such as car loans and mortgages) must be paid inside the plans. This means that once you file a Chapter 13 plan, all of your car and mortgage payments must … Read More

No, you can’t exclude any of your credit cards when you file a bankruptcy case. You must list on your bankruptcy papers all of your debts. Pursuant to very clear bankruptcy law guidelines, you must disclose all of your property and all of your debts. With respect to your debts, you must even list in your bankruptcy paperwork (“the schedules”) … Read More

I’m talking here about personal income taxes. If you file individual bankruptcy (Chapter 7 or Chapter 13), then your bankruptcy case filing will stop any collections activity from the Internal Revenue Service or other taxing body. As far as discharging (wiping out) that tax debt, I can address that more fully in a different post, because it’s a complicated subject. … Read More

After I’ve discussed before, Chapter 13 is a sure-fire way to protect your house from foreclosure, and it can serve numerous purposes, including getting caught up on your income and real estate taxes, and wiping out unsecured debt (such as medical bills and credit cards). So, if you decide to file Chapter 13, what happens next? Okay, you’ve already done … Read More

This is a frequent question that clients have, and it’s a natural one to ask. Let’s review some of the factors that will lead to the answer. First, the automatic stay of the Bankruptcy Court will instantly stop any and all collections activity upon the filing of your case. So, if you are facing a lawsuit, a garnishment or a … Read More

Remember that you can get help from your utility bills after filing a bankruptcy case. If you are behind on your gas and electric bills, then the utility company in question will issue you a new account with a $0 balance. Unfortunately though, a lot of folks who file bankruptcy are up to date with their utilities. In Pennsylvania, the … Read More

Basically, in order to adequately assess your debt problems and prospects for filing bankruptcy, any bankruptcy attorney would need to review the past six months of paystubs, along with as many of your bills as possible. If you are married, then paystubs for both spouses (whether you are intending to file a joint bankruptcy case or not) would be needed. … Read More

If you’re in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, it is possible, although tricky, to modify the terms of a mortgage loan during the bankruptcy case. You and your attorney must navigate past your mortgage company’s bankruptcy department and seek out the Loss Mitigation Department of the mortgage company. It is likely that the two departments do not communicate with each other. … Read More