Key Events In A Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

What happens when you file for bankruptcy under Chapter 7? At Seattle’s Resolve Legal, a Seattle Law Bankruptcy firm handling only consumer bankruptcies, we’ve found that when clients understand the key events in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, the process is less stressful.

Here are the events:

You meet with an attorney at our Seattle law bankruptcy firm.
The attorney at our Seattle law bankruptcy firm will collect information about your financial situation. This information is needed for documents that will be filed with the bankruptcy court. The attorney at our Seattle law bankruptcy firm will arrange a meeting for you with a consumer credit counselor, a step debtors usually must take before filing for bankruptcy. Also, the attorney at our Seattle Law Bankruptcy firm will discuss costs and legal fees; most Chapter 7 bankruptcies are on a flat-fee basis.

Your case begins.
A petition prepared by an attorney at our Seattle law bankruptcy firm is filed with the bankruptcy court and begins your case. After the filing, the court will appoint a trustee to oversee your case.

Meeting of creditors.
The meeting occurs about six weeks after your case begins. At the meeting, you’ll testify under oath as to the accuracy of your petition. Your attorney at our Seattle law bankruptcy firm will be there. However, most creditors will not. The meeting is informal and lasts no more than 10 minutes.

Exemption Claim Objections
If the trustee and creditors object to any of your claims that certain property is exempt (in other words, you keep it and creditors can’t go after it), they must object within 30 days after the creditors’ meeting. Your attorney at our Seattle Law Bankruptcy firm will respond to any objections.

Debt Discharge Objections
If creditors have objections about debts you want discharged, they must object within 60 days after the creditors’ meeting. Your attorney at our Seattle law bankruptcy firm will respond to these objections.

Financial Education Requirement
Before you can be discharged from your debts, you must complete an instructional course about personal financial management. Your attorney at our Seattle Law Bankruptcy firm can arrange for this.

Discharge
All your debts are wiped out (with some exceptions such as child and spousal support).

Those are the key steps. If you want more information, your Washington
bankruptcy lawyer at Resolve Legal will be happy to provide it.