People often wonder if the bankruptcy court will tell them how to spend money, or prohibit or limit any expenses. The short answer is, no. It is true that the bankruptcy court looks into whether the person has the financial means to make any payments to creditors, and requires information …
Court’s filing fees for bankruptcy cases due to increase on June 1st, 2014
The judiciary periodically adjusts court fees for filing new bankruptcy cases. As operational costs increase and courts’ budget becomes tighter, it’s no wonder that the adjustments have been increases in the filing fees charged by the courts. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Current Chapter 7 court’s filing fee = $306 For cases filed on …
What can you do about wage garnishment?
With a judgment in hand, a creditor can garnish the person’s wages. Typically, a creditor can take 25% of net earnings from each pay check until the entire debt – plus collection fees – is paid off. What can you do if you received an earnings withholding order, or, worse …
21 things NOT to do at the 341 Meeting of Creditors
If you file a bankruptcy petition, you will normally be required to attend one court meeting, called 341 Meeting of Creditors. This meeting is a very important step to getting your debts discharged. 341 Meeting is brief and fairly informal, and usually boils down to answering some standard straightforward questions posed by …
You versus the Joneses: does other families’ income matter if you are filing bankruptcy?
This may come as a surprise, but other families’ income does make a difference in your bankruptcy case. Here is why: in the Means Test in your bankruptcy filing, the court compares current median incomes with your gross income to assess your financial well-being and ability to pay creditors. Of …