The goal of most bankruptcies is to obtain a “discharge.”  But what is that?  In broad terms, a discharge is relief from your obligation to pay that debt.  The debt goes away, and you need no longer worry about it. 
Thus, in a typical chapter 7 bankruptcy, when you are done, you will have discharged all [...]

Tell me about all of their property.  Not just the things they want to keep, or the things they owe money on, but all of their property.
The bankruptcy petition requires you to list all of your assets and all of your debts.  That includes the house, the car, the boat and even the old, broken [...]

As noted in my earlier note, there are three types of liens that can attach to your property.  After filing for bankruptcy and discharging a debt associated with the lien, you can remove the lien from the property under certain circumstances.  It depends on the type of lien and the value of the property. 
Consensual liens [...]

It’s frustrating.  You went through the process, complied with everything your lawyer and the bankruptcy trustee said to do, and there’s still a lien on your home.  The debt was discharged.  Even the credit report shows it was included in the bankruptcy.  But the lien is still there.
Well, there are three types on liens that [...]

One of the things left intact by BAPCPA, the 2005 bankruptcy act, is the ability to convert from one chapter of the bankruptcy code to another. Thus, even though you filed a chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can convert it to a chapter 13 if you need to do so.
There are a number of reasons [...]

Last year, my friend and colleague, Susanne Robicsek, wrote a great comment on the different types of bankruptcies. Susanne covered all the types of bankruptcies, but what I want to do is outline the basic pros and cons between a Chapter 7 and a Chapter 13.
First of all, a chapter 7 is the basic, so-called [...]

No, you don’t need a lawyer to file bankruptcy. Anyone can represent themselves. The real question is the cost versus benefit ratio. The major reason to not hire an attorney is to save the fee. But that’s a lot like saving the cost of a map when you are somewhere you’ve [...]

It happens: you’ve hired an attorney to file for bankruptcy for you and somewhere along the line, either before or after the filing, he or she seems to be dropping the ball.  Can you change attorneys?  Absolutely!
But that’s not the end of the story.  To change, find a new attorney willing to take over.  Make [...]

Most bankruptcies start with the filing of a voluntary petition. That starts the automatic stay, stops creditor harassment and commences the case. Either concurrently or shortly thereafter the rest of the required documents must be filed. They consist of schedules of assets and debts, a statement of financial affairs and several other [...]

One of the most common reasons given for having to file bankruptcy is because of a divorce. Although I was never convinced that two could live as cheaply as one, there’s no doubt that setting up a separate household is an expensive venture. Losing one of two household incomes also often results in [...]