The Clerk's Office is prohibited by federal statute from providing legal advice. If you have any questions on how a bankruptcy filing affects enforcement of an eviction proceeding, please contact your local constable’s office, county sheriff’s office, or your legal advisor.

Unless you can begin making your future rent payments on time, Chapter 13 may only stop an eviction for a while. Like a home mortgage payment, unless you can stay current from the date of filing a Chapter 13 forward, the owner will be entitled to possession of his property and at best you will be able to remain in the property until the owner can obtain an order from the Bankruptcy Court granting relief from the automatic stay and begin eviction proceedings in state court.

Answer: Once a bankruptcy is filed, the court places an automatic stay on all legal proceedings, including the eviction of the person that filed the bankruptcy. The stay temporarily stops the landlord from pursuing the eviction. Before proceeding with the eviction, the landlord must go to the bankruptcy court and obtain permission to continue with the eviction. This process can take several months. Once the stay is lifted, however, the landlord may proceed with the eviction.

Come to the clerk's office and fill out an eviction complaint form. Make sure you bring your copy of the eviction notice you gave to the tenant. You will be given a court date approximately 18-21 days away.

A bankruptcy case is commenced by the filing of a petition. You must also file a statement of your assets and liabilities, and schedules listing your creditors. If you choose to file a bankruptcy petition without the assistance of an attorney, you can obtain the required forms at most stationery stores or at www.uscourts.gov/bkforms/index.html. There is a range of filing fees for bankruptcy cases, depending on the chapter of the bankruptcy code under which you file.

A person, partnership, corporation, or business trust may file a bankruptcy case. Corporations, partnerships and business trusts cannot proceed if they are not represented by an attorney. Only an individual can proceed without an attorney. However, the bankruptcy process is extremely complex, and individuals are strongly encouraged to seek competent bankruptcy counsel. If a person or the entity who owes the money, called the debtor, starts the bankruptcy, it is called a voluntary bankruptcy.

Eviction is the process by which a landlord obtains possession of the rental property by entering a law suit against the tenant and receiving judgment from the court directing the tenant to leave the property and pay back any rent, damage claims, and the costs of the court process. If your landlord is trying to evict you, you will be notified of this action and summoned to appear in court to address the charges. You should be prepared to offer a defense. Section 55-248.

Once in a great while, bankruptcy is the ONLY option. But if you have a source of income, debt management is an effective alternative. Even in a bankruptcy you will have to make payments in most cases. There are many unfavorable consequences surrounding a bankruptcy. With Harbour, you are debt free in 3 to 5 years and will have achieved financial freedom. Harbour does not provide legal advice. For specific bankruptcy information please contact an attorney practicing bankruptcy law.

Yes. Debts that can be discharged in bankruptcy such as credit card and medical obligations, should not be paid once an informed decision is made to file a Chapter 7 petition. Monthly bills such as rent, mortgage payments, telephone, and utilities, however, still must be paid.

Creditors are required by the operation of the automatic stay provisions of Bankruptcy Code Section 362(a) to immediately cease attempting to collect on all obligations once a bankruptcy petition is filed.

Yes. 11 U.S.C. 362 requires creditors to immediately stop harassing you upon your filing of a bankruptcy petition. This same code section also generally stops garnishments, writs of attachments, sheriff sales of homes, foreclosure, lawsuits, and repossessions of vehicles. There are some instances where bankruptcy will only temporarily stop collection efforts, or will not stop them at all, if prior bankruptcies were filed too recently (see your attorney for details).

Once the bankruptcy case is filed, creditors are barred from contacting you for collection purposes. This is referred to as the "automatic stay" which is very powerful and is designed to put an immediate stop to all collection activity.

Current law permits individuals to file their own cases and to represent their own interests in bankruptcy proceedings. However, it may not be wise for you to do so. Any bankruptcy case can become a complicated matter requiring both knowledge of the law and experience before the court to successfully complete.

Upon filing the original petition with the Clerk's Office, the "automatic stay" immediately takes effect and prohibits all creditors from taking certain collection actions against the debtor or the debtor's property. Although the stay is automatic, creditors need to be advised of the stay.

Any individual can file their own bankruptcy proceeding. This is called filing in pro per. If a person wishes to spend enough time learning about this area of the law, they can probably get through a simple bankruptcy filing. However, individuals with assets or problem debts are foolish to try to go it alone as they will most certainly harm themselves financially as a result.

This is a decision that needs to be made after careful consideration. You should consult with an attorney to determine if your case qualifies for bankruptcy or if there are any other avenues you could take to avoid bankruptcy. Griffeth Law Offices does not charge for an initial consultation to discuss bankruptcy cases.