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Monday, August 10, 2009

Bankruptcy Fundamentals

By Samuel Enright

As can be expected in a downward trending economy, more and more people are choosing to voluntarily file for bankruptcy. To assist the people in this situation, this article was created to explain some of the aspects of bankruptcy.

When people hear the term bankruptcy, they often picture someone who simply chooses not to pay his or her bills. However, in reality, most people who file for bankruptcy are very good people. They simply are unable to keep up with their secure debt (such as their house) or unsecured debt (such as mounting medical bills).

To add insult to injury, this legal proceeding is difficult (actually impossible) to complete without the aid of a lawyer. You are actually required to use a lawyer to file bankruptcy (Even if you do not want to).

While most people choose to voluntarily file for bankruptcy, that is not always the case. Your creditors, if you go over a certain threshold, can actually force you to file. While this may sound very un-American, it is done every day.

It is important to know that there are two chapters of bankruptcy. The first, Chapter 7, means that you will have to totally liquidate all of your holdings. The second, Chapter 13, means that you will have to submit to a repayment plan.

As the law requires you to use an attorney, you must enlist one if your wish to file for bankruptcy. Even if you could proceed without an attorney, you really would not want to.

In the past, the attorney only played a small role in the proceedings. However, now that the law has been rewritten, the lawyer must play a significant role. As an example, the lawyer must now affirm that all of the legal forms you fill out for the court are correct and truthful.

Unfortunately, this new levied legal requirement has forced the cost of filing to increase, with the majority of the price increase coming in the form of an increased legal fee. In return for the increased revenues, your lawyer becomes legally liable, along with yourself for ensuring your filing of bankruptcy is legitimate.

As this legal proceeding is very complex and emotionally draining, we highly recommend you contact an attorney sooner versus later.

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