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The two most common types of bankruptcy cases filed by individuals are Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies. Chapter 7, often referred to as a liquidation results in most of your property, which is not protected in accordance with Florida law being sold by a Bankruptcy court and the money being used to pay off your creditors. This type of bankruptcy is the most common type filed and is extremely helpful for people with limited or unstable income and very few assets or assets of minimal value. Individuals who qualify for a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy often are not in a position to repay anything towards their current debts. It is important to consult with a bankruptcy attorney to determine whether or not you qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Broward County, Florida.
A Chapter 13 bankruptcy is what is known as a reorganization bankruptcy or a wage earner bankruptcy. In a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, your property will not be sold to pay off your debts. Your debts are to be paid based on your income or assets pursuant to a structured plan approved by the Court. If you are able to successfully complete a court-ordered repayment plan to pay back your debts, you will likely be able to keep all your property. After you complete the repayment plan, you may have paid all or some of your outstanding debt over a period of up to five years. Any of your remaining unsecured debts, meaning any debt not secured by collateral, may then be discharged. If debt is discharged, it means it is forgiven and can no longer be collected by a creditor.
If you’re in serious debt in Broward County, Florida and are uncertain about how to rehabilitate your financial situation, contact an experienced bankruptcy attorney at the Darren K. Edwards P.A.
“Exempt” property is property you can keep and protect from creditors under State or Federal law. Some of the common exemptions (the list varies based on state law) are:
Homestead- You can exempt all or a portion of your home from the claims of creditors;
Insurance/retirement plans- certain types of retirement plans and the cash values of life insurance policies are exempt from the claims of creditors;
Personal Property- Depending on state law, the debtor can exempt household goods, furniture and furnishings, and clothing. There is a limit on the amount of personal property that the debtor can exempt.
Chapter 13 (as well as Chapter 11) is a reorganization of debt which provides a debtor the opportunity to pay all or a portion of their debt over a period of time under a plan of repayment approved by the bankruptcy court.
Chapter 7 bankruptcy is not available if a debtor has previously filed for bankruptcy protection within the previous 8 years. You may also have valuable nonexempt assets which would be lost as part of liquidation in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. You may also have debts that non-dischargeable debt that is secured by property which you want to keep.
Some categories of debts cannot be discharged in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy and must be fully satisfied in a Chapter 13 reorganization. These include:
A petition is filed with the bankruptcy court. These are various schedules or forms required toshow the debts owed and the asses a debtor owns. A debtor also has to provide information concerning their income, expenses and any assets transferred. If you file for bankruptcy you must pay a filing fee, however it is sometimes possible to pay the filing fee in installments.
If your debts are primarily consumer debts (as opposed to business debts), you must pass a Means Test in order to file for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The Means Test determines and compares your income to the median income for households of your size in Florida. If your income indicates you may be able to pay back a portion of your debt, you may be deemed ineligible to file a Chapter bankruptcy. However, you may still be able to file a Chapter bankruptcy. At Darren K. Edwards, PA, we will advise you at our initial free consultation whether you will pass the Means Test and if not, what alternatives are available.
A court-appointed trustee is assigned to oversee each bankruptcy case. After the case is filed, a meeting of creditors, where you attendance is mandatory, will take place approximately 4-6 weeks after filing. At this meeting the trustee will ask questions to determine whether the information you filed in the bankruptcy papers is correct. After the meeting, the trustee may ask you to provide additional records. Creditors rarely attend this meeting. If they do attend, they will be permitted to ask you questions as well. The meeting usually is very short. In approximately 3-6 months you will receive a court Order indicating your debt has been discharged.
The filing of a bankruptcy stops creditors from moving forward with collection or enforcement actions without obtaining permission from the bankruptcy court. If a creditor attempts to calls after a bankruptcy has been filed, they are advised a bankruptcy has been filed and are provided the case number of the filing. If a creditor engages in actions which harass the debtor after the filing, the creditor may be subject to being sued under various state and federal collection laws.
Darren K. Edwards, PA offers a free consultation. Let us review your case and indicate what options may be available to you. Call us at (954) 495-4690.
Although every case is different, issues such as child support, custody, alimony and equitable distribution are issues which arise in Divorce and other family law issues. Once these issues are decided by the Court, sometimes new problems pertaining to them develop years later. Sometimes financial issues can result from a divorce. A Darren K. Edwards, P.A. we work efficiently and economically to address such problems.
In Florida, the terms divorce and Dissolution of Marriage are used interchangeably. Florida is a “no-fault” divorce state, which means one does not need to have specific reasons or grounds to justify the end of a marriage.
Paternity is straightforward under Florida law if a woman is married when she gives birth to a child. Courts presume the legal father of the child is the husband. If the mother is unmarried when the child is born and if the mother and alleged father agree on who the child’s father is, they can sign a “Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity” form.
Although child support is determined based on a formula, it is not always a simple mathematic computation. An error in the calculation could result in you receiving or paying the incorrect amount of child support. There are a lot of variables that seem to be left out when non-lawyers attempt to calculate child support in their own cases.
In the excitement of divorce litigation, sometimes parents forget that their children are human beings and not property. Florida Courts view the “best interest of the child” as the legal standard in determining time-sharing schedules and the elements of a parenting plan. In Florida, we call this parental time-sharing.
A guardianship is a legal proceeding in the circuit courts of Florida in which a guardian is appointed to exercise the legal rights of an incapacitated person.
This is not something which most brides and grooms have on their wedding planning list, sometimes having a prenuptial agreement drafted and executed make sense in some circumstances.
Everyone in the United States has a legal name. Our legal name is usually listed on our birth certificate which is registered in our U.S. state or country of birth.
Darren K. Edwards, P.A. is located in Fort Lauderdale, FL and serves clients in and around Hollywood, Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Deerfield Beach, Dania, Pembroke Pines, Boca Raton, North Miami Beach, Opa Locka, Delray Beach, Miami, Hialeah – Coral Springs, Dania Beach, Davie, Hallandale Beach,, Margate, Miramar, OaklandPark, Pembroke Park, Plantation, Southwest Ranches, Sunrise, Tamarac, Weston, Wilton Manors, Lauderdale Lakes, Lauderhill, Broward County, Aventura, Doral, Fontainbleau, Golden Glades, Miami Beach, and Miami-DadeCounty.
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