Section 109(e) of the Bankruptcy Code provides: (e) Only an individual with regular income that owes, on the date of the filing of the petition, noncontingent, liquidated, unsecured debts of less than $360,475 and noncontingent, liquidated, secured debts of less than $1,081,400, or an individual with regular income and such individual’s spouse, except a stockbroker…Read more

Rule 1004.1 of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure allows an infant or incompetent person to file bankruptcy under certain conditions. Rule 1004.1 provides: If an infant or incompetent person has a representative, including a general guardian, committee, conservator, or similar fiduciary, the representative may file a voluntary petition on behalf of the infant or…Read more

If you file Chapter 7 bankruptcy and own any secured personal property, you will have to include with your petition a “statement of intention” letting those creditors know what you plan to do with their collateral.  You can either redeem the property, reaffirm the underlying debt, or surrender the property to the creditor. Section 521(a)(2)…Read more

The trustee can look at any transfer of property going back two (2) years prior to filing your bankruptcy petition. Section 548(a)(1) of the Bankruptcy Code states: The trustee may avoid any transfer (including any transfer to or for the benefit of an insider under an employment contract) of an interest of the debtor in…Read more

The credit counseling certificate must be issued by a provider that is approved for Colorado. The certificate is portable only if the provider is also approved in Colorado.  If the provider is not approved in Colorado, you will have to re-take the credit counseling course.

One of the more complicated parts of bankruptcy is calculating the means test, especially if you are over the median income for your state.  Having to navigate the means test is one of the best reasons for you to consider hiring a bankruptcy attorney. But if you are interested in looking at what can an…Read more

The U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion last week that clears up the question of whether or not a debtor can claim an ownership deduction when calculating disposable income for his Chapter 13.  Ransom v. FIA Card Services, N.A., No. 09-907 The case involved a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code uses…Read more

Depending on your financial circumstances, you may qualify for a waiver of bankruptcy filing fees if you are filing a Chapter 7 case. Section 1930(f) of Title 28 of the United States Code sets forth the requirements for obtaining a waiver of filing fees for a bankruptcy case: Under the procedures prescribed by the Judicial…Read more

Section 1519 of Title 18 of the United States Code sets forth the penalty for destroying, altering, or falsifying records in bankruptcy: Whoever knowingly alters, destroys, mutilates, conceals, covers up, falsifies, or makes a false entry in any record, document, or tangible object with the intent to impede, obstruct, or influence the investigation or proper…Read more

Section 157 of Title 18 of the United States Codes sets for the definition of, and penalties for, fraud in the context of bankruptcy: A person who, having devised or intending to devise a scheme or artifice to defraud and for the purpose of executing or concealing such a scheme or artifice or attempting to…Read more