Imagine how you would feel being completely debt-free. No more bills in the mail. No more nasty creditor calls. No more embarrassing phone calls at work from bill collectors. No more sleepless nights worrying about how you are going to make it through next month. No more real or threatened lawsuits, no more wage garnishments or bank levies. Would you feel better? Relieved? More optimistic? Less depressed? Happy? Chapter 7 Bankruptcy may be the solution.

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy effectively wipes out all unsecured dischargeable debt, forever. Debtors who obtain the Chapter 7 Discharge have shown the Court that they have no realistic ability to repay a significant portion of their debt over the next three to five years. Some debts are non-dischargeable, such as alimony or child support, recent taxes, most student loans, personal injury damages caused by drunk driving, among others. An experienced bankruptcy attorney will advise you as to the dischargeability of your debts.

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy filings are presently at an all time high since the new laws went into effect in October, 2005. The credit card industry was only temporarily successful in deceiving most of the nation into believing that Chapter 7 Bankruptcy was no longer available, or extremely difficult to do. The truth is that most of the burden and hardship imposed by the new laws rests upon your attorney. This is why bankruptcy attorney fees are now nearly double what they once were prior to the new laws. This is due to the fact that the amount of work and the time invested by your attorney under the new laws is nearly double or more than what it once was, especially for debtors whose income is above the state's median income. Likewise, the United States Trustee's office is now auditing a significantly larger volume of cases as well. United States Bankruptcy Court filing fees continue to increase as well.

The typical Chapter 7 Bankruptcy case lasts about three and one half to four months from filing to discharge. Immediately upon the filing of the Chapter 7 Bankruptcy case, the Court sends out official notice to all parties involved in the bankruptcy setting forth the date, time, and location for the Meeting of Creditors. This meeting takes place about thirty days after the Chapter 7 Bankruptcy case has been filed. The meeting is mandatory. Creditors usually do not appear. Your attorney will accompany you to the meeting, which typically lasts no more than a couple of minutes. Creditors then have sixty additional days to object to their debt being discharged, if they have legal grounds for bringing the objection. Objections are rare and typically do not happen for two reasons; 1) most debtors are honest hard-working people, and 2) the bankruptcy attorney's knowledge and skills with pre-bankruptcy planning will help to avoid potential objections. After the sixty day deadline passes, the Bankruptcy Court will typically issue a Discharge within two to four weeks.

Every case presents a unique set of facts and circumstances as well as financial history. An experienced bankruptcy attorney will insist upon interviewing you in person to help you determine if Chapter 7 Bankruptcy is right for you. An interview typically lasts thirty minutes to two hours, depending upon the size, nature, and complexity of your unique financial situation. Most attorneys offer a free initial consultation. We have provided a questionnaire under the FREE EVALUATION page which provides the attorney with a basic understanding of your situation. We encourage you to fill out and submit the form so that the attorney will be better able to respond to your inquiry.