The first court appearance is for a hearing called the "meeting of creditor." This hearing usually takes place about a month after the case is filed. At this hearing the debtor is put under oath and questioned about his or her debts and assets by the hearing officer or trustee. In most chapter 7 consumer cases no creditors appear in court; but any creditor that does appear is usually allowed to question the debtor. See similar questions...

Most debtors have to appear in court at least twice: once for a hearing called the meeting of creditors, and once for a hearing on the confirmation of the debtor's chapter 13 plan. The meeting of creditors is usually held about a month after the case is filed. The confirmation hearing may be held on the same day as the meeting of creditors or at a later date The debtor's testimony should not be lengthy at either hearing, however. See similar questions...

The debtor should immediately notify the bankruptcy court in writing of the new address. Because most communications between a debtor and the bankruptcy court are by mail, it is important that the bankruptcy court always have the debtor's current address. Otherwise, the debtor may fail to receive important notices and the chapter 7 case may be dismissed. Many courts have change-of-address forms for debtors to use when they move, and the debtor should obtain one if a move is planned. See similar questions...

A discharge will be denied in a later chapter 7 case if the debtor has been granted a discharge under chapter 7 or chapter 11 in a case filed within six years before the second petition is filed. See similar questions...

In the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of North Carolina, you will have to appear for at least one court hearing generally known as the First Meeting of Creditors. This meeting is conducted by the Chapter 13 Trustee. The bankruptcy judge will not be attending this meeting. This meeting will be held within 30 to 60 days after your case is filed. You will be notified of the time, date and place of this hearing by your attorney and by the Trustee. See similar questions...

A debtor may retain and redeem certain secured personal and household property, such as household furniture, appliances and goods, wearing apparel, and tools of trade, without payment to the secured creditor, if the property is exempt and if the mortgage or lien against the property was not incurred for the purpose of financing the purchase of the property. See similar questions...

The debtor's attorney performs the following functions in the chapter 7 case of a typical consumer debtor.. Analyze the amount and nature of the debts owed by the debtor and determine the best remedy for the debtor's financial problems. See similar questions...

Each case is different. First, there must have been a Notice of Possible Dividends issued in the case to which you timely filed a proof of claim. Several months after the deadline to file claims has passed you may contact the Chapter 7 trustee and ask when the trustee anticipates making payments to creditors. Remember that in more complex cases or cases involving litigation, there may be many months of delay before payments may be made to creditors. See similar questions...

Yes. Your home is exempt so long as it is your personal residence plus 160 contiguous acres if located outside a municipality or your personal residence plus 2 acre within a municipality. See similar questions...

Florida law allows each debtor to exempt $1,000 of equity in an automobile. If a husband and wife are filing a joint bankruptcy case, they are each entitled to use the $1,000 vehicle exemption. Equity is the value of the car less the amount owed to the bank or finance company. For example, if the car is worth $6,000 and you owe $5,000 to the bank, you have $1,000 of equity and will be able to keep the car. See similar questions...

wishes to repay all or most of his or her unsecured debts and has the income with which to do so within a reasonable time, has valuable nonexempt property or has valuable exempt property securing debts, either of which would be lost in a chapter 7 case, has one or more substantial debts that are dischargeable under chapter 13 but not under chapter 7, or has sufficient assets with which to repay most debts, but needs temporary relief from creditors in order to do so. See similar questions...

Chapter 13 is the preferred choice for a person who wishes to repay most or all of his or her unsecured debts, and whose income is sufficient to allow him or her to do so in a reasonable amount of time. In addition, if the debtor has a considerable amount of nonexempt property, or a lot of valuable exempt property used as security for debts, this property could be lost in a Chapter 7 case, and so a Chapter 13 may be the preferred option. See similar questions...

Under certain circumstances a debtor may be able to modify a secured debt such as a vehicle or mobile home. The debtor may have the need for bankruptcy relief for future bills and wants to hold open the possibility for conversion or refilling [e.g. anticipated medical bills]. See similar questions...

In Chapter 7 cases your right to keep your property is controlled by the answer to two questions. The first question is "Does a secured creditor have the right to take the property because I am not paying on the debt?" The second question is, "Can I claim the property as exempt?" If the answer to the first question is "no", and the answer to the second, "yes", then you can keep the property. The next two sections will help you answer these questions. See similar questions...

PACER (Public Access To Court Electronic Records) A web-based format that allows anyone with internet access and a PACER login from the court to access official court records via the internet at https://ecf.wiwb.uscourts.gov See similar questions...

Yes. Even though a debt has been discharged, the debtor can still make a voluntary payment of the debt. This often happens, for example, with debts that are owed to family members or friends. But the key to this kind of payment is that it must be entirely voluntary; the debtor has no legal obligation to pay a discharged debt, and the creditors can take no action to pressure or persuade the debtor into making payments. See similar questions...

A couple of weeks after you file for bankruptcy, you will receive a notice from the bankruptcy court to attend a meeting of creditors. This meeting is scheduled under Section 341a of the bankruptcy code. The bankruptcy court will also notify the creditors you listed in your bankruptcy papers. A trustee runs the meeting and, after swearing you in, may ask you questions about your bankruptcy and the documents you filed. The questioning by the trustee usually only lasts for a few minutes. See similar questions...

The basic difference between chapter 7 and chapter 13 is that under chapter 7 the debtor's nonexempt property (if any exists) is liquidated to pay as much as possible of the debtor's debts, while in most chapter 13 cases a portion of the debtor's future income is used to pay as much of the debtor's debts as is feasible considering the debtor's circumstances. See similar questions...

The essential difference between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 is in the handling of the debtor's property. In a Chapter 7 case, all nonexempt property owned by the debtor is sold, and the proceeds used to pay as many of the debtor's debts as possible. In Chapter 13 cases, a debtor's income is applied towards payment of as many of the debtor's debts as possible. A Chapter 13 debtor typically retains more of his or her nonexempt property. See similar questions...

In the office of the clerk of the bankruptcy court in the district where the debtor has resided or maintained a principal place of business for the greatest portion of the last 180 days. The bankruptcy court is a federal court and is a unit of the United States district court. Yes. A husband and wife may file a joint petition under chapter 7. if a joint petition is filed, only one set of bankruptcy forms is needed and only one filing fee is charged. See similar questions...