If you have any kind of claim that could produce money or property for you, it’s critical that you tell your bankruptcy attorney all about it.  Here’s why.

Everyone who files bankruptcy is required to file a set of schedules that list all their debts and all their property.  These schedules are filed under penalties of perjury.  Most people try to give accurate information because they want to be honest but also because failure to do so is a federal crime.  Rich and powerful people have gone to federal prison for hiding assets.

The Bankruptcy Code defines “property” very broadly.  It includes much more than obvious things like real estate, cars, jewelry, and bank accounts.  It also includes intangible assets like tax refunds, potential lawsuits, and claims for personal injury, workers compensation, social security, or child support.  So the simple reason you should disclose such claims is to be honest and to comply with the law.

There is also a more complicated but equally powerful reason.  Courts have developed a doctrine called judicial estoppel that can kill your claim if you do not disclose it.

Judicial estoppel is based on every court’s desire to maintain its own integrity.  Judges believe people should not be able to assert one set of facts in one court and completely opposite facts in another.  Because people who file bankruptcy swear that their schedules accurately disclose all their assets, failure to list a claim in effect tells the bankruptcy court that you do not have a claim.  Then, when you try to prosecute the claim in another court, or before an administrative agency, you are saying that you do have a claim – the exact opposite.

With every legal claim, there is someone on the opposite side – a defendant, an insurance company, or an employer – who has every reason to see the claim fail.  Defense lawyers regularly check to see whether claimants have filed bankruptcy and, if so, whether they disclosed their claim.  The defense lawyer will usually succeed in having any undisclosed claim dismissed.  It doesn’t matter how badly the claimant was hurt, how much money or work he has lost, or how deserving he is.  His claim is finished.

One final thing.  Many states have exemptions that protect most if not all of the proceeds of injury claims and the like. This means that you, and not your creditors, get the benefit of these funds.  But many bankruptcy courts will disallow an exemption if the debtor does not promptly disclose the corresponding asset.  So this is one more way that failing to disclose a claim can lead to a bad outcome.

Don’t let this happen to you.  If you have a claim of any kind at all, discuss it fully with your bankruptcy lawyer before you decide to file, whether or not you are asked about it.  And if you do file, make sure it is listed on your schedules.

Examples of ‘other property' that can be repossessed include jewelry, furniture, electronics, home appliances, and cash. Here we will focus on your repossessed vehicle, however, which is the most common property repossessed, and how to get it back.

It is very important to act quickly to get your repossessed vehicle back because the law states you must file for bankruptcy within 90 days of the repossession in order to retrieve the vehicle. However, you should act right away - because the creditor can resell your vehicle and it is then extremely difficult to get back.

When you file for bankruptcy, the bankruptcy court can look at any payments and property transfers within the past 90 days and determine if they may hinder the repayment of creditors. Any payments or property transfers within 90 days before you filed for bankruptcy can be seen as a preferential transfer and can be reclaimed. When your vehicle is repossessed, the creditor is acquiring equity on it. Because of this, the vehicle can be seen as a preferential transfer and the creditor can be forced to return the vehicle to you.

Fortunately in this situation the law works in your favor, but the court must still be persuaded that the vehicle is rightfully yours and order the creditor to return it. Your attorney must file a bankruptcy petition and argue that the repossession of your vehicle is a preferential transfer.

If you are in this situation, speak with an experienced attorney to learn more about how to get your repossessed property back. The attorneys here at Clark and Washington have many years' experience in helping debtors reclaim their repossessed vehicles, so we know how to use the law to your advantage.

Here are some ways the SCRA protects you from bankruptcy while you are serving in active duty in the military:

• All bankruptcy proceedings are frozen, eviction is prevented, and the court cannot enter into a judgment while members of the military are serving in active duty.
• Actions such as reducing interest rates on loans and debts that accumulated before active duty can be taken to assist the service person.
• If military reasons prevent a service person on active duty from appearing in court, an attorney can be appointed for the service person to protect them against default judgments such as bankruptcy proceedings.
• It is possible for court proceedings to be halted if the defendant is a member of the military and is not able to appear in court.

Even if a court proceeding started before you were serving in the military, the SCRA protections apply to any court proceedings taking place, including bankruptcy, once you begin to serve. Typically 90 days after you have been discharged from the military, SCRA protections end. However, you can be released from an agreement, such as a lease, without any consequences if you were stationed after the agreement was made.

There are several factors that determine SCRA protections and I recommend speaking with an experienced attorney if you are experiencing financial troubles.

When you file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you will be repaying all or a portion of your debt by making installments to the Chapter 13 Trustee that have been outlined in the payment plan and approved by the bankruptcy court. The Trustee is then responsible for paying the creditors that you owed. Sometimes debtors that have filed for Chapter 13 realize that they are unable to make their plan payments, or cannot make car or mortgage payments once the plan has begun.

If this is the case, as long as your bankruptcy case has not been converted before, it is your legal right to try and convert from a Chapter 13 to a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Here are several things you will need to do in order to convert to a Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

You will need to take the "Means Test" again, which the court will use to determine if you qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy by evaluating your financial information such as your income, debts, and expenses. If you pass the means test you will need to then file a "Notice of Conversion," which costs a fee, with the bankruptcy court. The Trustee will then be in charge of determining if you are eligible to convert to Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

Because bankruptcy laws are very complex and constantly changing, I recommend speaking with an experienced bankruptcy attorney to assist you through the Chapter 13 to Chapter 7 conversion process.

For example, payments change greatly if you have an adjustable mortgage, your energy bills are different every month, and/or if you need to surrender or purchase a home or a vehicle. All these scenarios will cause your Chapter 13 budget to be affected. Because your budget is constantly changing, your plan may be adjusted accordingly.

Under section 1329 of the Bankruptcy Code, the trustee, the debtor, or one of the unsecured creditors can ask for a change in the payment plan anytime during your Chapter 13 bankruptcy case. The amount that your budget needs to change before your plan is adjusted depends on who reviews your plan. While all bankruptcy courts follow the Bankruptcy Code, states and districts enforce it differently. Typically, if you have a change of 10% in your budget for three or more months, your plan may be adjusted. If your expenses increase, it may be determined that you owe your creditors less money. If your income increases, it may be determined that you owe your creditors more money.

I strongly recommend speaking with an attorney to understand your Chapter 13 payment plan and how it can fluctuate throughout the duration of your case. Because the Bankruptcy Code is enforced differently depending on location, an attorney can clarify how it will be enforced in your case. Also, make sure that you notify your attorney of changes in your budget throughout the duration of your case, because you can get in trouble for concealing such changes.

On this Tennessee Bankruptcy Blog, we regularly go over the most common types of personal bankruptcies, Chapter 7 and Chapter 13. However, there are less-known types of bankruptcy protections as well, such as Chapter 9, Chapter 11, and Chapter 12 bankruptcy. In this post, we will focus on Chapter 12 bankruptcy, which may help some of you Tennessee farmers out there. Commonly known as the Family Farmer Chapter, Chapter 12 is designed specifically to meet the needs of family farmers and fishermen.

To be defined as a family farmer for Chapter 12 bankruptcy, you must meet certain criteria. The farmer's debts can not be over $1.5 million, which does not include debt owed on a home unless it is directly connected to the farming business. At least half of the farmer's gross income must have been earned from farming in the year prior to the filing, and at least 80% of the debt must be farm related. Also, the farmer must make an income that is large enough to be able to make payments under a Chapter 12 plan, before the bankruptcy petition is approved.

The Basic Process: To file for Chapter 12 bankruptcy, the debtor must first file a bankruptcy petition at a cost of $200. Within 15 days after filing, the debtor must give a complete list of their liabilities and assets, and must pay a deposit of $500 to the appointed Chapter 12 trustee. Within 90 days the debtor needs to file a repayment plan telling how their creditors will be repaid. The debtor must also file a financial report every month which shows disbursements and receipts. Within 20 to 60 days after the bankruptcy petition is filed, the debtor must attend a meeting where they are questioned by the trustee and creditors and suggestions on the repayment plan are made. Within 45 days since the repayment plan was filed, the court will either approve or reject the plan.

Chapter 12 bankruptcy is very similar to Chapter 13, but has a higher debt ceiling than Chapter 13 because farmers and fishermen must sustain higher debts than workers with normal wages. Debtors must repay all or part of their debts within three years, or five years if they can persuade the court of extenuating circumstances.

Just like I would suggest to those thinking of filing a Chapter 13, I advise anyone that is considering filing bankruptcy under Chapter 12 to consult and with an experienced bankruptcy attorney.

It is possible there are already class action lawsuits you are involved in which you may even be unaware of, or you may already have a claim against Toyota for defects or injuries suffered due to your vehicle.

When you are filing for bankruptcy, you must disclose all of your assets. If you have a claim against Toyota, or are a part of a class action lawsuit, it is considered an asset you own and must be disclosed in your bankruptcy case. If you're in the situation where you didn't know about the claim at the time you disclosed your assets, you need to update your paperwork with it when you do find out.

If you are going to someday recover money from a claim, who gets the share depends on the details of your specific case. However, your chances of keeping a share of the money are much better if you disclose it to the court, rather than the court discovering that you kept it from them.

For example, in 2007 a Utah couple lost a $50,000 personal injury settlement to the bankruptcy trustee when they failed to list the pending lawsuit as an asset when they filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The couple would most likely have been able to keep the settlement if they had disclosed the asset to the court, but they had knowingly concealed it and lost it instead.

It has been reasoned that if the filer can prove that they had absolutely no knowledge of the asset or there was no obvious reason to conceal it than they could keep it. The trial judges have great discretion in deciding if someone has purposefully hidden an asset or not. The lesson though is this; assets that should be yours can be easily taken away if you fail to disclose everything to the bankruptcy court.

If you own a Toyota and are filing bankruptcy, talk to a lawyer immediately to make sure you are aware of any class action lawsuits you are involved in and are disclosing all assets in your bankruptcy filing. After all you have been through already with a faulty product, the last thing you want is to lose access to the settlement payout you deserve.

Along with cell phones and personal computers, the age of people using credit cards is getting younger and younger. What used to be considered to be only used by adults, credit cards are now regularly used by many young adults/teenagers.

Studies show that 32% of high school seniors use a credit card. And college freshman are offered an average of 8 credit cards during their first week of school. However, with 60% of students maxing out their credit cards within their first year of college, young adults are obviously not being taught how to responsibly use a credit card or the importance of their credit score. This can have devastating effects, as even some young people end up having to file for bankruptcy in some occasions. Fortunately, as of February 2010, Congress passed the Credit Cardholder's Bill of Rights, which has limited the amount that credit card companies can advertise to young people.

Numerous college students are forced to drop out of school due to credit card related financial issues that could have been prevented with proper credit-education. The CARE Program, which stands for Credit Abuse Resistance Education, provides financial education presentations to students. With the constant messages of excessive consumption and material pleasures, it can be difficult for young adults to fight the temptations of overspending and abusing credit. CARE interjects to teach the consequences of irresponsible spending, such as bankruptcy, dropping out of school, higher interest rates, and other serious financial problems that can occur down the line as a result of misuse of credit.

CARE has put together a video that you can watch here: (http://www.careprogram.us/video-taking-control-of-your/ )

The video is aimed to teach students about the dangers of credit cards and covers the basics of credit, debt, savings, and the importance of making a budget. The video also provides important information for adults as well, and I recommend people of all ages to watch it, especially if you are experiencing personal financial troubles or are considering bankruptcy. It is never to early or late to learn about responsible spending and how to use credit cards wisely. As you know, credit counseling is a requirement of bankruptcy, so perhaps familiarizing yourself with how to make wise financial choices is your first step in getting back on your feet financially.

Translating legal jargon can be daunting, especially when dealing with the stresses of bankruptcy. Many terms are frequently used but not fully understood by filers. To determine if a debtor is eligible to file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, they need to know the total amount of the secured debt. Here, I will cover what "secured debt" is, and how to tell if a debt is secured.

Examples of secured debts are home mortgages, home equity lines of credit, and car loans. These secured debts are liens, which means the creditor is secured, and were legally created by an agreement between the debtor and the creditor. Liens determine the rights a creditor may have in the debtor's property. Here are some less known forms of liens:

Security Interests: A seller is secured when they finance a purchase you make. Credit plans by retailers such as Sears and Good Guys give the seller a security interest in the products purchased, and they have the right to reclaim the goods if you discharge the debt through bankruptcy. In contrast, if you purchase the products using a credit provided by a lender instead of the seller (a credit card) then the products are yours with no security interest in favor of the lender. However, creditors rarely take legal action to repossess the products.

Judgment Liens: A creditor must take an extra step of filing or recording the judgment to create a lien on the judgment debtor's property. Secured debts are totaled separately from unsecured debts when determining the debtor's eligibility to file Chapter 13 bankruptcy, so you need to know if judgment liens have been perfected. Laws vary between states so it's important to check how judgment liens are perfected in your state. For example, in California if a creditor records the judgment then they have a lien on all of the debtor's property in the county.

Tax Liens: If a tax lien is recorded, then a lien is perfected on all of the taxpayer's property.

Blanket Security Interests: If you give the lender a security interest in all of your personal property, then the lien "blankets" all of your assets, potentially even including assets acquired after the security interest agreement is signed.

When someone is burdened with medical problems, multiple other issues arise that contribute to why they would need to file for bankruptcy. Along with extremely high medical bills, lost wages from having to take days of work off all are also major factors.

The study also revealed a fact that challenges the negative stigma often associated with filing bankruptcy. Approximately 70% of the people that filed bankruptcy for medical reasons owned homes, and the majority had gone to college. It is finally becoming realized that there is no shame in filing bankruptcy, as so many filers these days are middle class and financially stable before medical reasons push them into bankruptcy.

Medical problems can occur suddenly and can hit hard. And they can happen to anyone. Health insurance is not a guarantee that injuries or illness won't burden you with out-of-control debt, and it's almost impossible to plan for the unexpected.

If you are filing medical-related bankruptcy, medical bills are considered unsecured debt and will be discharged entirely if you are filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy. If you are filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, your medical bills can be ordered and combined with other debts, and potentially reduced, in a bankruptcy trust. In either case, bankruptcy may be just what you need to eliminate your debt arising from medical bills and help you get back on your feet again.