In emergency situations, it does not take long to get your bankruptcy case filed. If I have room in my schedule, I can get your Georgia bankruptcy case filed the same day you come into my Rome Office. However, if you have an emergency filing, you need to plan on spending the entire day in my office while we prepare your bankruptcy petition. We file all of our bankruptcy cases on the electronic system. We can file a bankruptcy any time of day as long as the court system has not been shut down for maintenance.

In most situations, my Georgia clients like to take a week or two before they make the decision to file. I don’t believe in pressuring anyone to file. If you ever feel like a bankruptcy attorney is pressuring you to file bankruptcy, find another attorney.

Most clients will come to my office for a 30-45 minute interview where we go over all of the debts, assets, and all of your income. We make every effort possible to minimize your time in the waiting room.  It is extremely rare for anyone to have to wait more than five minutes past their appointment time. Every now and then, we have emergency situations that put us behind schedule but these are rare.

During our meeting, I have a long list of questions I like to go through with you. I want to give my clients enough time to give me all of the background information that has led to the case filing. During your initial free consultation, I will be looking for potential pitfalls in your case. If I find any, I will explain them to you in great detail.

Once a client decides to file, we will set up a two hour sign appointment. I am a firm believer that anyone who is considering filing bankruptcy should carefully review every single page of the petition with their bankruptcy attorney. If some bankruptcy attorney tries to rush you through the process, you are being set up up for disaster. You should not be made to feel like a hamburger in fast food joint. When you sign a bankruptcy petition, you are signing it under penalty of perjury. Your neck is on the line. Take your time! In my opinion, the most important part of the petition is your list of creditors. You must make sure that every single creditor you have is listed on the petition. You are required by law to list them all. Even if you are cosigned on a debt, you must list it as well.

In some situations, clients need to get a case number as soon as possible. For example, if the car creditor says to you, “I am going to repo the car tomorrow,” you will need a case number today to prevent tomorrow’s repo.

Some bankruptcy attorneys will file a front page petition. I will not. A front page bankruptcy petition is basically your name and address. You get a case number but you must file the rest of the petition within a short period or your case will get dismissed. Rather than running the risk of you not being able to make back into my office before the deadline, I would rather get it all done in one day so that we know we have a case that will work well when it is filed.

Other Posts:

1. What is Chapter 13?

2. What is Chapter 7?

3. How much does it cost to file?

4.  Stop Garnishment

5. What Should I bring to my 341 meeting of creditors?

Anyone who owns a life estate can file bankruptcy.  However, there is a risk of losing the ownership of the life estate when you file Chapter 7 if the life estate is worth more than you are allowed to exempt in Georgia.  In contrast, you may be able to protect the life estate in a Chapter 13 even if it is worth more than your exemption allows as long as your are paying your unsecured creditors the difference over the life of your plan or if you are in a 100 percent Chapter 13 plan.  In order for you know your best option, you should meet with a bankruptcy attorney.

Most cases I have seen in Georgia that involve life estates have something do with family land.  In Georgia, family land is more than just an asset.  Family land is sacred.  No one wants to risk losing it.

I recently met with a client in my Dalton GA office who told me a story about a log cabin that has been in her family since the early 1840s.  I will refer to her as Ms. Dalton.  This beautiful cabin has been well maintained and has no debt on it.  Ms. Dalton has an uncle who currently lives in this cabin.  According the will of her mother,  the uncle may live in the cabin for the remainder of his life.  Upon his death, the cabin reverts to Ms. Dalton.

In the case of Ms. Dalton, the cabin had no mortgage on it.  She estimated that it was worth at least $100,000.  To make matters worse, her uncle was 80 years old and in bad health.  Based on her specific facts, I advised her to stay away from Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

If Ms. Dalton were to file Chapter 7, I think the bankruptcy trustee would have no problem finding a buyer for her life estate.  How much would you pay to own her interest?  If her uncle was only 20 years old, you probably would not be willing to pay very much.  Eighty years old and in bad health?  In the case of Ms. Dalton, Chapter 7 was not worth the risk of losing the family land.  Its a good thing she was honest and upfront with her bankruptcy attorney about everything.

Other Posts:

1. What is Chapter 13?

2. What is Chapter 7?

3. How much does it cost to file?

4.  Stop Garnishment

5.  Stop Foreclosure

When I meet with clients from the Northwest Georgia area, one of the first questions I usually get is, “Can I keep my tax refund if I file bankruptcy?”  For some, the answer is yes and for others, the answer is no.   Most people have plans for how they are going to spend those tax refunds long before they receive them from the IRS.  For some, its clothes for the kids.  For others, its car repairs, house repairs, catching up past utility bills and on and on.  A few weeks ago, I met with some clients in my Rome office who needed all of their refund to repair their roof.  In their case, everything worked out.

So can you keep the tax refund if you file bankruptcy?  The answer to this question is maybe.  First it depends on what type of bankruptcy case you are filing.  Second, it depends on how much of your Georgia Bankruptcy Exemptions have been used up on other assets.  Third, how much of your refund can be attributed to the Earned Income Tax Credit?

Lets say you file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy.  If you have a tax refund that you anticipate receiving before your case will be discharged, the tax refund must be exempted as an asset in your case.  Every case is different.  As a general rule in Georgia, if your tax refund is less than $5,000.00, we should not have a problem.  However, you must remember that every case is different.  If you have other assets that use up all of your Georgia Bankruptcy Exemptions, we may have a problem.  We will be able to tell if you have an issue before the case is filed.  If your tax refund is based entirely on the Earned Income Credit, you should be able to keep all of it. Make sure you explain to your bankruptcy attorney the amount of your tax refund that can be attributed to the Earned Income Credit.

If you file a Chapter 13, the trustee wants every extra dime you have to be paid toward your Chapter 13 case.  As a result, they want all of your tax refund that you receive during the applicable commitment period of the plan.  However, you can keep any amount of the refund that can be attributed to the Earned Income Tax Credit. Like I said above, you must disclose all tax refund information to your bankruptcy attorney in order for him to protect any of the tax refund money.

Other Posts:

1. What is Chapter 13?

2. What is Chapter 7?

3. How much does it cost to file?

The automatic stay is an injunction against against the continuance of any legal action against a debtor or the debtor’s property. 11 U.S.C. 362. The automatic stay protects a debtor from harassing collection calls, repossessions, foreclosure sales, and garnishment of wages.  The protection from the automatic stay starts as soon as the debtor gets a bankruptcy case number.

For example, let’s say a creditor lawsuit has been filed against a person who lives in Dallas GA and that person comes to see me to file a Chapter 13 bankruptcy.  As soon as we get a bankruptcy case number and notify the creditor of the bankruptcy filing, the creditor must stop all collection actions. Our normal course of action is to file a plea of stay in the local court requesting that the lawsuit be put on hold while the bankruptcy is active.

For another example, let’s say I have a client from Rome GA who is worried that their car creditor is about to repossess their car.  Once we have a bankruptcy case number and we have notified the car creditor, the car creditor must stop all efforts to repossess the car. Any car creditor that ignores the filing of a bankruptcy case and repossesses a car post-petition can be severely punished by a bankruptcy court.

Another great benefit of the automatic stay is codebtor protection.  A Chapter 13 can protect a codebtor who is liable with the a debtor on a specific debt. In order to keep this protection, the debtor must pay back the entire cosigned debt along with contract interest to fully protect the codebtor.

In Northwest Georgia, the automatic stay gives a debtor protection from creditors subject to the oversight of the bankruptcy judges in Rome, Georgia. After a bankruptcy case is filed, the automatic stay remains in effect until the judge grants a request of a creditor to end the stay or the debtor gets a discharge.

The automatic stay does not protect a bankruptcy debtor from criminal proceedings or actions to modify child support orders.

Just because you file a Chapter 13 or a Chapter 7 bankruptcy does not mean that you can’t have a bank account in Georgia.  However, if you have no bank account at all before your case is filed, it is possible that you may have difficulty opening a new one after bankruptcy.  When you file, your case is a matter of public record.  Banks can check to see if you have filed bankruptcy before they allow you to open an account with their institution.

If you have a checking account with a bank that you owe money for a loan, credit card or any other type of debt, I would recommend that  you close that account and open a new one with an institution that you don’t owe any money to before you file.  Under Georgia law, a bank has a right to setoff.  This means that if you have $100 in an account with Rome GA Bank, that bank can take your $100 as soon as you file a bankruptcy if you owe Rome GA Bank any money.  If money has been seized through this type of setoff after the bankruptcy case is filed, we cannot get the money back after you file your case.  The money is gone.

If you decide to open a new bank account before you file, make sure you don’t forget to change any direct deposit orders as well.  Nothing is worse than having your entire paycheck seized by a creditor bank because you forgot to change the order.  Get some type of confirmation from your payroll department that the change order has been received and processed.

I recently met with a client in my Dalton office who works for a large carpet company.  My client completely forgot to close her bank account and open another one with a bank that she owed no money.  After we filed the case, her paycheck was directly deposited into her bank account.  Since she had a credit card with this same bank, they seized a good chunk of money.  Don’t let this happen to you.  Plan carefully before you file.

When there has been a significant change in circumstances since the Chapter 13 was filed, most people are able to convert from a Chapter 13 to a Chapter 7 For example, the most common cause of converting from a Chapter 13 to Chapter 7 is the loss of a job. Another is example is a major increase in monthly expenses. In order for me to give you a definitive answer to this question, I need to review your case with you.

There are some instances where it might be a bad idea to convert. For instance, a person who has a large amount of equity in their house that is not protected by the Georgia bankruptcy exemptions may not want to convert to Chapter 7 If a person in this type of situation converts, the Chapter 7 trustee will put their house on the market and will sell it if she can find a buyer. Most bankruptcy debtors in this type of situation will usually voluntarily dismiss their Chapter 13 to keep the case from going into Chapter 7

There are many factors that go into deciding whether or not a Chapter 13 case should be converted to a Chapter 7 Each case is different. Any person who is considering this option should meet with their attorney who filed the case and review the entire situation.

It is not too late. Judgment liens can be removed in most Chapter and Chapter 7 cases. If your house is worth $20,000 more than what you owe, we may have a problem. Call me today  so that we can discuss your options. It does not cost anything just to speak with me.

A judgment resulting from a DUI and criminal fines cannot be discharged in Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 Bankruptcy does not protect you from criminal prosecution.

The reason I think it is a bad idea to use a prepaid credit card is because of the outrageous fees that are hidden from the buyer.

Prepaid credit cards often appeal to Chapter 13 debtors because they allow a person to use a credit card without violating the prohibition against incurring new debt while being in an active Chapter 13 While you are in an active Chapter 13 case, you cannot use any regular credit cards because that would be incurring new debt. In theory, using a prepaid credit card is just like using cash except for the awful fact that the prepaid credit card company charges a fortune for using it.

I think it is a much better idea to use a debit card that takes money directly from your checking account. In contrast to a prepaid credit card, debit card charges are clearly listed on your bank statements.

Zachary Stauffer, in the “Tricks and Traps of the Card Game” (pbs.org), reports that prepaid credit cards have “been criticized by consumer groups for a lack of transparency regarding hidden fees that can drain the balance of a prepaid card. Many charge fees for balance inquiries, point of sale transactions, cash withdrawals and inactivity.”

I think it is bad idea to ever purchase prepaid credit cards.

The purpose of this blog is to give you a rough idea about why you must know the value of your house before you even think about filing bankruptcy in Georgia.  Under Georgia Law, a single person can exempt a maximum of $10,600 of equity in their house when they are filing either Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 (see GA Code 44-13-100).  For married couples filing bankruptcy in Georgia, the maximum exemption is $21,200.

Lets say a married couple has a home in Rome, GA worth $100,000.  They owe $70,000.  Their equity in the house is $30,000.  If we subtract the the exemption amount of $21,200, we are left with $8,800.  If this person were filing bankruptcy, I would recommend they file a Chapter 13 to protect their home.  In a Chapter 13, the person will have to pay back $8,800 to the unsecured creditors to protect their home in Rome.  In this situation, if the couple owes $100,000 in credit card debt, they will have to pay back only $8,800 assuming they pass the means test and their income and budget justify a composition chapter 13 plan.

In contrast, if they filed a Chapter 7, the trustee may sell the house and use the proceeds that are not exempt to pay creditors.  Could a person in this type of situation roll the dice and file Chapter 7 ?  Some Georgia bankruptcy lawyers roll the dice…….I don’t.  Some Georgia bankruptcy attorneys will argue that the cost to the Chapter 7 trustee in marketing the property and closing the deal will exceed $8,800 in transaction costs.  It might.  Why take a chance with your house when filing bankruptcy?

A good place to start when determining the value of your home is your tax bill.  Somewhere on your property tax bill, it will state “estimated fair market value.”  You can check your county tax assessment online at www.gaassessors.com.  Another way to determine the value is to call a Georgia realtor and ask them to give you an estimate on how much you should ask for your house if you were going to sell it.  The best way to determine the value is to get a certified professional appraisal.

Remember, there are exceptions to exceptions.  Don’t read this blog as legal advice.  If you want legal advice, you should call me at 888-832-8249 for your free consultation so we can see how the law applies to your situation.

Click here for Top Ten Myths About Bankruptcy

Other Posts:

1. What is Chapter 13?

2. What is Chapter 7?

3. How much does it cost to file?

4.  Stop Garnishment

5.  Stop Foreclosure

I recently spoke with a client who was the victim of Debt Management Company Scare Tactics.  After I met with this client and confirmed that the qualifies for Chapter 7, he went home and called his Debt Management Company and asked that they stop deducting money from his checking account because he was filing bankruptcy.  The representative from the debt management company responded that my client could not file bankruptcy.  When my client asked, “Why?”, the debt management company representative lied to my client by saying “that anyone who owns a house can’t file chapter 7.”   The debt management company representative then asked my client, “Do you own a television?”  My client answered, “Yes.”  The debt management company representative then lied to my client again and told him that the could “kiss the television goodbye.”   As you can imagine, my client was upset and disheartened after this conversation with the debt management company liar.  Fortunately, my client called me and I was able to calm his fears and set the record straight.

By telling my client that he could not file for bankruptcy, the representative from the debt management company broke the law by engaging in the unauthorized practice of law.  Some debt management companies will say just about anything to get your money.  Don’t let some debt management company scare you away from exercising your rights.  Meet with a real attorney and find out about your legal options to obtain real debt relief.

Here is the truth about debt management companies.  Credit card companies are not legally stopped from suing you for collection of the debt.  In contrast, Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 prevents credit card companies from suing you for collection.  Debt management companies have no power to force any creditor to accept a lower payment from you.  In contrast, a confirmed Chapter 13 plan payment or a Chapter 7 discharge is binding on all creditors listed in the case.  With Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 we don’t need permission from your creditors.