Bankruptcy
Law Office of C.R. Krieger
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What exactly is a bankruptcy? Bankruptcy is a federal court procedure that allows you to get a new start financially. It does this by prohibiting most of your creditors from doing anything to collect the debts you owed them before you filed for bankruptcy. While it's not a pleasant prospect, it's lots better than the old English practice of Debtors' Prison! There are two kinds of individual and small business bankruptcies.
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How will a bankruptcy affect my future?
What information do I need to begin?
Bankruptcy Chapters
What will the bankruptcy cost?
Where are the §341 First Meeting of Creditors held?
While your credit
report will show a bankruptcy for 7 to 10 years, this doesn't mean you can't
still borrow money. There is usually no other noticeable effect from
a bankruptcy. You are not likely to lose any of your property unless
you are unable to pay a secured debt like your mortgage or a car note.
If that's the case, we will arrange for an orderly surrender of the property.
Bankruptcies are so common, you probably have friends or neighbors who have
used a bankruptcy but you cannot tell from any changes in their lifestyles.
On the other hand, the nasty collection calls and letters will stop.
You will not have to pay most of your outstanding debts. You are allowed
to 'reaffirm' some debts such as your mortgage and car notes and keep them
as long as you are able to pay for them. You will have a fresh financial
start.
What information do I need to begin?
Basically we need
all of your financial information:
- All credit card statements
- All medical and dental statements
- Documents from any lawsuits filed against you
- Knowledge of your monthly expenses
- Current wage statements, check stubs
- If you own your house, amount of the mortgage, name of mortgage company, fair market value of house
- Current real estate tax bill
- Income tax returns for the last two years.
- List of all your property and a reasonable estimate of their 'Fair Market Value'
- List of all financial accounts, retirement plans, pensions, or insurance policies that are worth money, and the amount they are worth
We will evaluate all of your financial information and we may tell
you to wait for a few months or weeks, or we may even tell you to go away
for a few years because you don't need to file at all right now. That
means your finances make you what lawyers would call "uncollectable".
We examine your overall financial pictures to make this decision and
decide if it is the right one for you.
In the appropriate case, we may refer you to a reputable non-profit consumer counselor to help you to arrange to repay your debts without a bankruptcy.
In the appropriate case, we may refer you to a reputable non-profit consumer counselor to help you to arrange to repay your debts without a bankruptcy.
Bankruptcy Chapters
A Chapter 7
applies to both corporate and individual/joint filers.
It is a liquidation of all the non-exempt
assets (if any) to pay creditors and the discharge
of debts of the debtor. In most of our cases,
there aren’t enough non-exempt assets to pay the unsecured creditors anything.
The debts simply go away. You may not file another Chapter 7 bankruptcy
within six years of a prior Chapter 7 discharge.
A Chapter 11 is a corporate reorganization plan. That doesn’t mean the corporation is out of business; it just means that it needs some time, and maybe some concessions on the amount of money owed, from the creditors. A Chapter 11 is complex and expensive, but if you, or you and your spouse, are the sole corporate shareholders, it may be possible to use the much more affordable Chapter 13 proceeding to keep going while your business recovers.
Finally, a Chapter 13 is pretty much the same thing, only it’s for individuals and joint (married) filers. If your income is high enough, and your expenses low enough, you may choose to file a Chapter 13 reorganization case. This allows you to pay back some, or all, of what you owe in regular payments. Your credit will be better after this kind of bankruptcy and you can still file another bankruptcy immediately afterward, if you need to.
A Chapter 11 is a corporate reorganization plan. That doesn’t mean the corporation is out of business; it just means that it needs some time, and maybe some concessions on the amount of money owed, from the creditors. A Chapter 11 is complex and expensive, but if you, or you and your spouse, are the sole corporate shareholders, it may be possible to use the much more affordable Chapter 13 proceeding to keep going while your business recovers.
Finally, a Chapter 13 is pretty much the same thing, only it’s for individuals and joint (married) filers. If your income is high enough, and your expenses low enough, you may choose to file a Chapter 13 reorganization case. This allows you to pay back some, or all, of what you owe in regular payments. Your credit will be better after this kind of bankruptcy and you can still file another bankruptcy immediately afterward, if you need to.
What will the bankruptcy cost?
Our fee for a Chapter
7 bankruptcy is a total of $1,499.00, which includes the $299.00 required
filing fee. If payment of this fee cannot be made in full, we require
that $599.00 be paid before we begin any action and the balance of $900.00
be paid prior to the First Meeting of Creditors which is scheduled by the
Bankruptcy Court after the documents have been filed.
Our fee for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a total of $3,274.00, which includes the $274.00 required filing fee. We require that a deposit which includes the filing fee be paid before we begin any action and the balance will be put into the Chapter 13 Plan.
Our fee for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy is a total of $3,274.00, which includes the $274.00 required filing fee. We require that a deposit which includes the filing fee be paid before we begin any action and the balance will be put into the Chapter 13 Plan.
Where are the §341 First Meeting of Creditors held?
Manitowoc City Hall
Council Chambers.
Click here for map.
Sheboygan County Courthouse 5th floor council chambers. Click here for map.
Federal Courthouse for the Eastern District of Wisconsin in Milwaukee 512 E. Wisconsin Avenue. Click here for map.
Sheboygan County Courthouse 5th floor council chambers. Click here for map.
Federal Courthouse for the Eastern District of Wisconsin in Milwaukee 512 E. Wisconsin Avenue. Click here for map.
We are a debt relief agency.
We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code.
11 USC §528(a)
We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code.
11 USC §528(a)
