How To File For Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Louisiana

By Heidi Carver


There are many people who are considering bankruptcy, but do not know what Chapter 7 incorporates. This is a common bankruptcy filing chapter used in the United States. It is called Chapter 7 because it falls into that chapter of the Bankruptcy Code.

Another name is goes under is liquidation bankruptcy. During a Chapter 7 bankruptcy Louisiana, your assets which do not fall under the exemption rule are disposed of by a trustee appointed by the court. The amounts received from the sale of your assets are used in the settlement of your outstanding debts.

Before you start your petition, you should make sure that you have all the required documents available. These include reports like payslips, bank statements, credit card statements, loan agreements and anything else you may need for the completion of the petition. The information that you supply in the petition documents should be the same as those listed in your financial reports.

There are many documents to be completed when filing for chapter 7. You can obtain the documents as a package from the court clerk's office. You may have to pay a fee to obtain it. The documents will include, among others, schedules of assets and liabilities and a statement of financial affairs. You are required to lay bare his financial life to the court. This includes listing all property, creditors, expenses, income, debts and property transfers. Once all the documents have been completed, it needs to be filed with clerk of the court. A filing fee will need to be paid at this point.

It is necessary to pass a means test. This should be done prior to the filing. The test is used to determine if you have sufficient means to settle your creditors. If you should fail the test, you will need to fall into a special category to be able to file under this chapter of the bankruptcy code.

After you have filed the petition, a notice will be issued by the court calling for your creditors to attend a meeting. The notice is issued to the list of creditors in your petition documents. During this process, the trustee will pose questions about your financial situation. If the trustee is not satisfied with the answers you provide, the meeting may be postponed to allow for investigation into your affairs. The creditors may also raise question regarding the state of your finances during this meeting.

The trustee is able to take possession of non-exempt property you own and sell it to raise funds. There are certain types of property that are exempt from seizure. For example, you are able to retain your retirement accounts. The list of exempt property has to be stated in Schedule C of the petition documents you include in your filing. Any assets and funds taken by the trustee will be used for distribution among your creditors.

The court will order a discharge of your debts about 60 days after the first meeting of creditors, if no objections had been raised by the trustee or the creditors. This order protects you from any further legal action by your creditors. You should bear in mind that not all your debt obligations will be discharged.




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