United States Bankruptcy Court Article

The Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Law – The Pros And Cons

It is better to realize as early as possible that going through a bankruptcy claim is not easy. People generally opt for it as their first remedy. You must know the bankruptcy laws well in order to decide.

The bankruptcy law has been crafted in a way to promote provisions that are a part of filling bankruptcy claims. It contains systematized laws that help the debtor to rid himself of any financial obligations that he has to undergo. The Chapter 7 bankruptcy law is in other words called straight bankruptcy. This law deals with the liquidation process. According to this, the one who is filing for bankruptcy has to surrender all his assets except those that are unaccredited or exempted to the lawyer or the trustee in bankruptcy.

The court must appoint a trustee in bankruptcy and he will be given charge of selling the assets or converting them into cash. Once the assets have been converted to cash the creditors are paid with these funds. Under the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law you are discharged from any obligation after a period of four months.

When can you apply the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law? It is applied when the debtor is left with no property to give up or lose. This is one of the most common bankruptcies that are filed in the United States by either individuals or business corporations. You could personally file bankruptcy by abiding with the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law or the court may impose it.

The Chapter 7 bankruptcy law will prompt a business man to sell all his assets and pay what he owes the creditors and finally close down his business. The procedures are very similar for individuals who have been forced to file under the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law, the only difference here is the individual will have no business to close down.

The advantages of filing a claim under the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law first and foremost are that any amount of debt may be cleared and as soon as you get out of the trouble you are in, you get a clean chit. The other advantage is that there is no particular amount of debt to qualify you for filing under the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law. As there is a protection that is granted by this law, the creditors cannot exert any authority over you. It is processed very quickly and you can be discharged from any debts in a short period, say in about four to six months.

The disadvantage of the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law is that you have to give up your whole property. Debts like taxes, child support, housing mortgages, students’ loans and car loans are not discharged under the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law. Along with you the co-signers will also be pulled in and asked to pay for your home loan. This law may be only availed once in every six years.

It becomes difficult to avail other loans because your credit rating gets damaged. Once you have filed for the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law, it cannot be withdrawn.

Tread cautiously if you are considering filing under the provisions that are based on the Chapter 7 bankruptcy law. All you need is to be protected and not end up with added problems.