Law Offices of Miller and Hollander

	Some Information About Bankruptcy

	People who are having trouble paying their debts sometimes consider bankruptcy as a remedy. The reason that an individual usually files bankruptcy is to obtain a discharge. Generally, a discharge will wipe out your debts so that they will not have to be paid. Creditors then will be unable to try to collect those debts or sue you and obtain a judgment. Except for certain types of debts, your creditors will have no claim on your future income or assets. Bankruptcy will not wipe out most mortgages or liens. If you want to keep your house, generally you must continue the payments on your mortgage. If you want to keep your car, you must likewise continue to make the payments. However, you may want to redeem or reaffirm certain obligations in order to retain some of your property. In return for having your debts discharged, you must turn over to the trustee in bankruptcy all of your nonexempt property. The law allows you to keep certain property which is called exempt property. We will explain your exemptions to you. The trustee will then sell your nonexempt property which has been collected and distribute the proceeds to your creditors according to priorities established by law. Very often there is not enough money to pay for anything more than the costs of administration, and your creditors will receive nothing. You can be denied a discharge. This is rare if you honestly and completely disclose all of your assets and liabilities. We will ask you many questions in order to help you remember all of your assets and liabilities and help you make a full and complete disclosure as is required by the bankruptcy law. Some of the reasons for being denied a discharge are fraudulent transfer of an asset to keep it away from your creditors or the bankruptcy trustee, concealment of assets, or disobeying or making a false statement to the court. Such acts may also constitute federal crimes for which a debtor can be fined or imprisoned. Certain types of debts, such as child support, alimony, some taxes and student loans are not discharged in bankruptcy. Also, a creditor who has been willfully injured or defrauded may have the debt excepted from discharge, such as a credit card company with a claim for charges made when you had no intent or ability to repay. We will discuss with you each of these situations if they are relevant to you and your options in that event.
	Alternatives To Bankruptcy
	Bankruptcy is not the only method of dealing with a debt problem. In some situations another way may be more advantageous for you than filing bankruptcy. We will discuss other alternatives with you if they are appropriate.

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