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Bankruptcy Articles & Links

Resources and links to information about bankruptcy

Bankruptcy Articles & LinksSite Producer2024-08-03T07:34:01-07:00

The following will explain a few of the fundamentals of bankruptcy.

Nothing beats legal advice from a seasoned bankruptcy expert that is tailored to your specific circumstances. My goal is to help educate you on the ins-and-outs of bankruptcy and answer questions you may have (generally for FREE).  But before we talk, it is good to know more about the basics of bankruptcy.

Bankruptcy is a complex interaction of numerous laws (federal and state) that should not be attempted without competent legal counsel. Do not use document preparers or attorneys who do not devote their entire practice to bankruptcy law. The majority of consumer bankruptcy attorneys provide free or low-cost initial consultations. Use these bankruptcy articles to learn more about the fundamentals of bankruptcy.

Important Chapter 7 & 13 Deadlines

The following link gives you access to a calculator that generates the time periods specified within the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, in any local rule or court order, or in any statute that does not specify a method of computing time.

Glossary of Bankruptcy Terms

On this page you will find a glossary of commonly used terminology used in bankruptcy or in a court setting.

Quick Links to Articles & Resources

Are you asking yourself the following?

  • What Should I do to Prepare for Filing Bankruptcy?
  • What are the Credit Counseling and Debtor Education Classes?
  • What is Involved with Filing a Bankruptcy?

If you are asking yourself these questions, you are not alone. I have created a page with the 16 most frequently asked questions I get from my clients. Click below to read more in detail and to answer more of your questions.

Visit “16 of the most frequently asked questions”

These links are great resources for finding the answers you need about laws, fiduciary responsibility and other knowledge based questions.

What is bankruptcy, besides being really scary?

Some Basics:

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy:

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy:

Hiring someone to help you file bankruptcy:

Foreclosures and Bankruptcy:

Bankruptcy and Religion:

Small Business Bankruptcy:

Bankruptcy for a Creditor:

More Bankruptcy Links & Resources:

Valuation Resources – house and vehicle

Bankruptcy Law:

Bankruptcy Courts:

Bankruptcy Trustees and Clerks

Bankruptcy Agencies and Departments & Organizations:

Bankruptcy Organizations, Forums & Committees:

  • Arizona Consumer Bankruptcy Counsel: “ACBC” Mentoring group of experienced consumer bankruptcy council. Arizona based. Membership includes participation in very active listserv, monthly CLE luncheons, reduced prices for sponsored CLE programs, access to education videos.
  • American College of Bankruptcy: The College was formed in 1989 and has over 800 Fellows that are selected by a Board of Regents from among recommendations received from the Circuit Admissions Council in each federal judicial circuit. The Regents select those who meet the following standards: (i) the highest professional qualifications and ethical standards; (ii) the highest level of character, integrity, professional expertise and leadership; (iii) sustained evidence of scholarship, teaching, lecturing and distinguished published writings on bankruptcy practice or insolvency practice and the overall improvement of the process.
  • American Bankruptcy Institute – Comprehensive information about legislative news related to bankruptcy, bankruptcy statistics, judges’ opinions, bankruptcy code and analysis. ABI is “the nation’s largest multi-disciplinary, non-partisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency.” ABI publishes a newsletter 10 times per year, distributed to ABI members.
  • National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, Inc. is an organization of attorneys representing mostly debtors. Their site contains information about their organization and cases of interest.
  • The Commercial Law League of America (www.CLLA.org) claims to be America’s oldest creditors’ rights organization. Their site contains a special update on the final report of the Bankruptcy Review Commission and other bankruptcy info.
  • The American Board of Certification certifies attorneys as specialists in business bankruptcy, consumer bankruptcy and creditors’ rights law. It is a non-profit organization, sponsored by The American Bankruptcy Institute and The Commercial Law League of America, dedicated to serving the public and improving the quality of bankruptcy and creditors’ rights law bars.

General Bankruptcy Information & News:

Tax & Bankruptcy Resources:

Searching for someone who cares about their clients?

Take your time and find an attorney who is conscientious, experienced, compassionate, and with whom you have a strong working relationship.

If you choose a bankruptcy lawyer based only on price, then bad things are very likely to happen.  Like unnecessarily losing your tax refunds, and other unexpected that could have been avoided, or at least planned for. Instead, look for bankruptcy assistance with same level of care you would use to buy a car or a house.

Ready to schedule your FREE consultation?

For individuals seeking a FREE bankruptcy consultation visit this link

For small businesses seeking a FREE bankruptcy consultation visit this link

Resources + Articles for Consumers

Value of your home:

Value of your vehicle:

Online Calculators:

Resources + Articles for Lawyers

Arizona Consumer Bankruptcy Counsel: “ACBC” Mentoring group of experienced consumer bankruptcy council. Arizona based. Membership includes participation in very active listserv, monthly CLE luncheons, reduced prices for sponsored CLE programs, access to education videos.

American College of Bankruptcy: The College was formed in 1989 and has over 800 Fellows that are selected by a Board of Regents from among recommendations received from the Circuit Admissions Council in each federal judicial circuit. The Regents select those who meet the following standards: (i) the highest professional qualifications and ethical standards; (ii) the highest level of character, integrity, professional expertise and leadership; (iii) sustained evidence of scholarship, teaching, lecturing and distinguished published writings on bankruptcy practice or insolvency practice and the overall improvement of the process.

American Bankruptcy Institute – Comprehensive information about legislative news related to bankruptcy, bankruptcy statistics, judges’ opinions, bankruptcy code and analysis. ABI is “the nation’s largest multi-disciplinary, non-partisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency.” ABI publishes a newsletter 10 times per year, distributed to ABI members.

National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, Inc. is an organization of attorneys representing mostly debtors. Their site contains information about their organization and cases of interest.

The Commercial Law League of America (www.CLLA.org) claims to be America’s oldest creditors’ rights organization. Their site contains a special update on the final report of the Bankruptcy Review Commission and other bankruptcy info.

The American Board of Certification certifies attorneys as specialists in business bankruptcy, consumer bankruptcy and creditors’ rights law. It is a non-profit organization, sponsored by The American Bankruptcy Institute and The Commercial Law League of America, dedicated to serving the public and improving the quality of bankruptcy and creditors’ rights law bars.

General Resources & Articles

ABI: Status of recent bankruptcy bills or cases
US Bankruptcy Law – Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School.

Quick reference to commonly used bankruptcy terms. Knowing the terms used during the bankruptcy process will help you understand the process. visit our Bankruptcy Glossary.

Can you lose your home or other essentials?

Even if you own your home outright, you may lose it in the process. Depending on where you live, certain assets are exempt (excluded) from the bankruptcy estate, including all or part of the value of your home.

What is exempt property?

“Exempt property is any property that creditors cannot seize and sell in order to satisfy debt during chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy. The type of property exempted differs from state to state but often includes clothes, home furnishings, retirement plans, and small amounts of equity in a house and car.” according to law.cornell.edu.

What most people don’t understand is that everyone has the right to stop unsecured creditors from seizing their exempt property.  In other words, every adult has the right to protect the basic necessities of life.  Link to Arizona Exemptions.

Can you transfer non-exempt property into exempt?

Transferring assets that are not exempt into assets that are exempt, without more, isn’t illegal or wrong. The legislative notes of the Bankruptcy Code specifically allow this kind of activity. But this doesn’t mean that the process is risk-free. Changes to the bankruptcy laws in 2005 challenge the Constitutional right of every person to get good legal advice from their lawyer about making transfers or taking on new debt before filing for bankruptcy.

Who can file bankruptcy?

Almost anyone who owns property in the United States, or who has a permanent residence or business here, can file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. However, in order to be eligible for a discharge—the order that wipes out qualifying debt—you must first meet several criteria.

What questions should I ask about bankruptcy?

The question of who can file bankruptcy is deceptively simple – typically it is everyone.  But the real question needs to be “should a bankruptcy be filed?”  If so, “what type of bankruptcy?”  And then, “who should file the bankruptcy?”.  Followed by “when should a bankruptcy be filed?”.  But those are just a few of the questions that must be asked before anyone or any company files for bankruptcy protection.

What Questions should you ask?

Isn’t bankruptcy just a bunch of simple forms?

People think that filling out a bunch of forms is all it takes to file for bankruptcy because that is how some law firms handle them. What the law firms don’t tell their clients is that almost all of them will lose their tax refunds, their families are sued for the return of money or assets that were given to them, they lose their businesses or other assets that aren’t exempt, and so much more. A really good bankruptcy lawyer takes the time to teach their clients about the challenges of filing for bankruptcy protection, and help them plan for the best possible result.

What is the Chapter 7 process?

Individual Chapter 7 bankruptcy is the most common type of bankruptcy relief. The basic concept of Chapter 7 is as follows: The bankruptcy trustee assigned to your case sells your property to pay off your creditors, and the process concludes with the discharge of qualifying debt, such as credit card balances, medical debt, and personal loans.

How does a chapter 7 begin?

With the filing of a chapter 7 bankruptcy, the debtor’s assets and liabilities are effectively frozen.

The debtor preserves the exempt assets, while the bankruptcy trustee liquidates the non-exempt assets and distributes the money to the existing unsecured creditors ( Arizona Exemptions ). The debtor is subsequently relieved (discharged) of the need to pay most existing obligations, and creditors cannot collect the bankrupt’s future earnings. Lenders with home or car loans are either paid in full, the current value, or the objects are surrendered to the lender.

Unless a court order is issued, fully secured creditors will keep their claim on the collateral.

The secured creditor may apply for a court order permitting them to seize the secured collateral (house or car). Fully secured creditors have no right to share in any liquidated asset distributions made by the bankruptcy trustee.

What is the Chapter 13 process?

A chapter 13 bankruptcy is also called a wage earner’s plan. It enables individuals with regular income to develop a plan to repay all or part of their debts. Under this chapter, debtors propose a repayment plan to make installments to creditors over three to five years.

How does a chapter 13 work?

In contrast, a chapter 13 bankruptcy focuses on future income rather than current assets.

The debtor is allowed to keep all of their assets and pay creditors from future earnings. Payments are sent monthly to the bankruptcy trustee, who pays the arrears on the property, vehicles, taxes, and child support; only if there is money left over, the trustee pays the existing unsecured creditors, who file proofs of claims. This is achieved through a three- to five-year court-approved plan. The balance of the unpaid obligations contained in the plan are forgiven at the conclusion of the plan (discharged).

Future Income Growth

Some debts, such as student loans, survive a chapter 13 bankruptcy unless action is taken within the bankruptcy.

A few debtors must file chapter 13 because they earn too much money. The means test contained in this form and required by the Bankruptcy Code will help Ms. Drain with this analysis. The good news is that a chapter 13 bankruptcy often allows the debtor to save their home, remove junior liens on their homes and pay off their vehicles.

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