Bankruptcy
I have worked with many individual debtors and business owners from Minneapolis, St. Paul, and other parts of Minnesota who are experiencing financial difficulties and have helped them make financial decisions that minimized the risk and maximized the benefit of a bankruptcy filing. In some cases, I was able to advise a client to take steps that made a bankruptcy filing entirely unnecessary.
I provide a free initial consultation by phone, via Zoom or Skype, or in person to anyone looking for legal representation in the filing of a bankruptcy petition. Using basic information such as income history, total indebtedness, and total assets, I will determine if I think bankruptcy or some other option is the best solution for your situation.
If I conclude that filing a bankruptcy is the right legal option for you and if you decide you want me to represent you, we will schedule another appointment that will take place after you have provided the additional information that will be needed to complete your filing.
I generally charge a flat fee of $2,000 to represent clients filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy and $3,200 to represent clients filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Legal fees are higher for Chapter 13 than for Chapter 7 because filing a Chapter 13 case is more complex. However, total attorney fees will depend not only on the type of bankruptcy to be filed but also on the complexity of your case.
Additional costs, including the court filing fee and charges for mandatory credit counseling, will generally total about $375.
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What Is Bankruptcy?
Bankruptcy is a legal process overseen by the United States Bankruptcy Court designed to help individuals and businesses who are struggling to repay debts to creditors. Through bankruptcy they can eliminate all or part of their debt or formulate a plan to repay a portion of what they owe.
A primary goal of the federal bankruptcy laws is to give debtors a financial “fresh start” from unmanageable debts.
What Is Bankruptcy?
Bankruptcy is a legal process overseen by the United States Bankruptcy Court designed to help individuals and businesses who are struggling to repay debts to creditors. Through bankruptcy they can eliminate all or part of their debt or formulate a plan to repay a portion of what they owe.
A primary goal of the federal bankruptcy laws is to give debtors a financial “fresh start” from unmanageable debts.
Types of Bankruptcy
The main types of bankruptcy are referred to by the chapters that appear in Title 11 of the United States Code. They are briefly described below:
- Chapter 7, also known as liquidation, is a bankruptcy proceeding that both individuals and businesses can file although only individuals are eligible to receive a discharge (or debt forgiveness) in Chapter 7. In order to receive a discharge, individuals must surrender any property they own that is not exempt by law from the claims of creditors. To qualify for Chapter 7, debtors who have primarily consumer debt must pass the means test. For most debtors, this is as simple as showing that their income is less than their state’s median income; some with income above the state median can pass the means test by demonstrating that their “disposable income” after expenses is low enough.
- Chapter 9 allows municipalities like cities or counties to reorganize their debt.
- Chapter 11, also known as reorganization, allows businesses and some individuals to keep their business alive by restructuring their debt and paying creditors over time.
- Chapter 12 allows family farmers and fishermen with regular income to reorganize debt and pay creditors over time.
- Chapter 13 is a type of debt “reorganization” that allows individuals with regular income to keep all of their property (including property that is not exempt) and get a bankruptcy discharge by paying a portion of their debts over time, usually three to five years.
- Chapter 15 bankruptcy allows a foreign debtor to file bankruptcy in the United States court system in cases where there are assets in more than one country.
Most people filing bankruptcy end up filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 case. Either type of case may be filed individually or by a married couple filing jointly. If you would like more information on Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, or if your bankruptcy is being contested and you would like more information about our bankruptcy litigation services, click on one of the icons below.