How a bankruptcy attorney can really help you create and follow a path back to financial control…

A bankruptcy attorney can help you understand the many issues involved when considering filing for bankruptcy relief and may help you determine whether a Bankruptcy case is an appropriate option to resolve your debts. With the filing of a Bankruptcy case, the Bankruptcy Court will appoint a Trustee to review the accuracy and implications of the information disclosed in your Bankruptcy Petition and Schedules.  Since there is a limit on the value of the assets you may keep through a Bankruptcy case (the Bankruptcy “exemptions”), it is important to discuss the nature and value of all of your assets with an experienced bankruptcy attorney to verify that the value of your property is within the limits of the Bankruptcy exemptions. If the value of your assets are currently beyond the exemption limits, an experienced attorney can review options to appropriately bring you assets within the exemption limits and protect them through your Bankruptcy case.

Because the Bankruptcy Court will also determine your qualification to file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy or Chapter 13 Bankruptcy through a calculation generally referred to as the “Means Test” it is prudent to review the implications of the Means Test with an experienced bankruptcy attorney when you are considering Bankruptcy options.  The Means Test is complex and may be influenced by many subtle factors and an experienced bankruptcy attorney can provide options to minimize the limitations of the Means Test. An bankruptcy attorney may significantly reduce or eliminate results from the Means Test which may otherwise require substantial repayment.

A bankruptcy attorney can also help you understand the Bankruptcy Code also contains restrictions regarding your ability to discharge certain types of debts and/or restrictions regarding payments you have made preceding the filing of your Bankruptcy case.  Because these factors can be complicated and elusive, a thorough review of these factors by a qualified bankruptcy attorney can illuminate options which may be available to reduce or eliminate these problems.  Since the filing of a Bankruptcy case is an important decision which may be influenced by many factors, assistance from a qualified bankruptcy attorney may significantly influence your ability to discharge debts and keep your assets through a Bankruptcy case.