Can Credit Card Debt Discharged Bankruptcy
September 8th, 2010
Does anyone here filed bankruptcy w / o an attorney? Looking for some direction please.?
I am considering filing without an attorney. The situation is a wage garnishment of a sentence that seems to be 11k for the Credit Card. (I've been in litigation for years trying to prove a fraud, but clearly have not been successful – another story) Background: single mother, head of the family, 2 children, about 7k a student loan, a car loan, about 7500 failed to pay, no property or assets, and all my income goes to rent, home and child care. I am not behind on car payments or student loans. They simply can not afford to wage garnishments and I think a bankruptcy is my only option to end the embargo. As above 11k is the only debt I need discharged in bk, I think you may be able to handle this by myself rather than hire a lawyer who can not afford. Does anyone have personal experience with this or payment a sevice that only helps with the paperwork?
I have worked with clients through bankruptcy and have found a lawyer to be the best way to handle the situation. With the new bankruptcy law, may not be able to get the debt under Chapter 7 discharge if: Your gross income for the six months preceding the bankruptcy is that middle-income status, and (a) your income minus deductible expenses in a period of 60 months is more than $ 10,950 or (b) is income minus deductible expenses in a period of 60 months between $ 6,575 and $ 10,950, and is over 25% of non-priority debt. So you can see it now becomes confusing. (Typical of the regulations government.) So you need to ensure that their right to file Chapter 7 before, because if you do not, you will need to use Chapter 13 to pay debt over a period of five years to three. Their housing costs are taken into account when determining how much you are able to pay creditors. The Reform Act changed the way Most of these expenses, including rent, food and clothing to be fixed. It used to be decided by you and the court. The new law now uses IRS guidelines, which are considered usually very strict. If you wish to challenge the guidelines, you will need to request a hearing before a judge. Another reason for a lawyer. Under the new law, must now suffer, for his own account, a credit counseling agency nonprofit credit counseling approved before it can declare bankruptcy. This process can take up to three months while the agency tries to develop a payment plan between you and your creditors. In addition, you must complete, also in charge of a personal financial management course of education before obtaining a discharge. The new law also requires greater disclosure. In addition to providing a list of creditors, schedules of assets, liabilities, income and expenditure and a statement of financial affairs, now has to provide: paycheck is two months prior to the filing. Tax returns for previous years and current. Detailed monthly expenses. Other disclosures. Photo ID administrator's request. So you can see, this is only a formality. The lawyer could look at your situation and tell you whether bankruptcy even be considered. He may be able to take a look at the sentence and some work or have been removed completely. Even if you have to hire a lawyer, payment plans, and cost usually between $ 500 and $ 1,500 (slightly more or less depending on where you live), much less try to pay the $ 11,000 you owe if you can not get high. Here is a website with information on how to start a pro bono lawyer, and how to find one in your state. http://www.probono.net/. If you get a lawyer on your side quickly, he may be able to stop wage garnishment while investigating the sentence. You can see the problems that have been trying to prove fraud to the company Credit card without a lawyer. A lawyer may have been able to clear this up for years, or at least determine the amount actually payable.