After filing your bankruptcy case and satisfying all the requirements of the court you will receive a discharge in bankruptcy. The discharge is what officially eliminates your unsecured debts, such as credit card debt.
When you file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, your creditors may file claims to dispute the amount that you owe until your debt is discharged. After a discharge of debt, a creditor is not able to collect on that debt again.
If you are asking yourself: “Can I file bankruptcy?” the answer depends on your hardship and your personal income and assets compared to your debt. Before you file for bankruptcy it is best to call a bankruptcy lawyer. The bankruptcy attorneys at our Los Angeles law firm will take the time to talk to you and give you free legal advice before you make any decisions about filing for bankruptcy.
What Debts Are Not Discharged in Bankruptcy?
You may still have to pay back some of your debts after filing for bankruptcy. As a rule, the following debts cannot be forgiven if you file bankruptcy:
- Child Support payments that are due and owing, and any future payments
- Income Tax debts that are less than 3 years old
- Property Taxes that are past due, but less than 3 years old
- Student Loans
- Fines owed, but less than 3 years old
- Spousal Support payments that are due and owing, and any future payments
You should call and discuss your case with our lawyer before you file and discover that your debts cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. The attorneys at our law office in Los Angeles will talk to you and give you free legal advice before you make any decisions about filing for bankruptcy.
How to File Bankruptcy
It is really helpful to have our bankruptcy attorney prepare and file your bankruptcy. Filing for bankruptcy requires hours of preparation and planning. You will need to disclose all of your assets and debt. The court will ask for proof of income, such as tax returns for the past 2 years and recent paystubs. You will need to have a credit report printed with a list of all creditors, including credit cards, car loans, home loans, and any other loans or debts that are personal or not included on the credit report. You will need to file a complete petition [a court form] with schedules of all debts and assets. You will also need to complete a course for credit counseling [similar to the online driver’s school] which can be done online or on the phone. You will also need to file the complete petition with the court and pay a filing fee directly to the court. If any of the forms are not complete, or if the credit counseling certificate is not presented, the court will dismiss the bankruptcy within a very short period of time and you will lose the filing fee.
Our Los Angeles bankruptcy attorney will take care of all of the paperwork and appear by your side when your case is filed. If you have bankruptcy questions, you should call our bankruptcy attorney. We get calls every day from people wanting to know if filing bankruptcy will affect their mortgage; asking about the cost of filing bankruptcy; asking what debts are dischargeable in bankruptcy, asking: “Can I file for bankruptcy?” or “Should I file for bankruptcy?” If you are looking for bankruptcy lawyers in California, we offer free legal consultation and advice about whether filing a bankruptcy makes sense for you. Call today and talk to one of our bankruptcy lawyers or walk in and meet with us for free.
