Posted by: admin in chapter 13 banruptcy attorney on
supachick31554 asked:
some of my creditors are still calling, are they supposed to send them a letter or anything? when i filed my attorney said that in 30 days the bankruptcy pmts would start coming out of my check. does this make my bankruptcy official and can they still harass me? i also have not went to court yet. can the courts throw my case out? what would make them do that? how long does it take? i do have an attorney. so when i go to court and the creditors disagree with payment plan, can they dismiss my case and then i will be even further behind on my debts? i’m confused. my attorney led me to believe that there is nothing to worry about and my payments start on dec 15. one of my creditors called me and i told her what i did and she said that she would be contacting her lawyer and hung up. should i be worried?
also i was wondering if the loan company could take my collateral. such as my car, which is paid for, but i put it up when getting a small loan. it is 8 years old and has like 190000 miles so its not worth much.
Tags: Loan Company, Creditors, Collateral, pmts also i was wondering if the loan company could take my collateral. such as my car, which is paid for, but i put it up when getting a small loan. it is 8 years old and has like 190000 miles so its not worth much.
Your bankruptcy is not official yet. Just tell collection agencies that you have filed. Yes the court can turn down your request.
Once your creditors receive the information from the court that a hearing has been set, they have to stop demanding payment. But, just you saying it doesnt count, they have to get the letter from the court…So just give them your lawyers number when they call. The calls will stop soon. I would call my lawyer tomorrow and let him know you’re still getting calls just to make sure he filed with the court already..They shouldn’t have payments scheduled if you don’t have it court ordered yet since there’s no way to know what you will owe.
Technically they are violating the automatic stay order by calling you. In practical terms, most judges give creditors a little leeway, time for the mail to get there, creditor to update its database & notify collectors, etc., before they will entertain sanctions against the creditor for stay violations. When I worked for a bankruptcy practice our attorneys told clients to let the attorney know if creditors were still calling a month after filing.
You do not have to notify your creditors of your bankruptcy. The bankruptcy court sends out notices to every creditor listed on your creditor matrix. Sometimes the bankruptcy court can be a tad slow in doing this, so have patience. IF a creditor calls you and you tell the creditor that you have filed bankruptcy (and give them your case number) that serves as notice, and the creditor must not call you again whether or not it received a notice from the bankruptcy court.
Your upcoming 341 meeting is usually short and sweet. No judge is present and no decision is made at that meeting regarding the merits of your case. The trustee can ask you questions about your assets and about the schedules you filed. Technically, creditors can also appear at that meeting to ask you questions relevant to their claims. In practice, usually no creditors show up. Large companies (mortgage companies, credit card companies, hospitals, etc. do not send representatives to 341 meetings – not that I’ve ever seen anyway. IF any creditors show up, usually it is only (a) family or ex-family members who have an axe to grind, or (b) VERY small (sole proprietorship) business owners who don’t really understand bankruptcy very well. They can’t object to anything you’ve filed at this meeting, they can only ask you questions. And if they are long-winded the trustee will put a lid on it.
Your creditor is welcome to retain an attorney. His or her attorney should only contact your attorney, NOT YOU. Your attorney will handle any calls from creditors or their attorneys.
Sorry this is so long; hope it helps. The only other thing is: relax. And trust your attorney.
**Edited because Y!A “coffee break” posted only part of my original answer and cut it off in mid-sentence.
Re: secure loan (collateral) – In a Ch 13 *usually* nobody “takes” anything. The point of a Ch 13 is to repay creditors what you can (in some districts this may only be pennies on the dollar, if that, but it represents your best effort to repay). Once you have completed your Ch 13 Plan, the remainder of your unsecured debts will be discharged. Secured debts are treated somewhat differently. Unless you have elected to surrender the collateral, you will continue to make monthly payments (and your Plan may include catching up on any arrears) on secured debts (typically house, car).
**edited a 2nd time to respond to additional info posted by asker
Your passed the worry of creditors. If they call, just tell them you have filed. There is nothing they can do at this point. In fact, you cannot pay one creditor in favor of another after filing (that’s against the law).
The only time a bankruptcy is thrown out is if you are hiding assets.
Your worry now becomes living without credit. For at least the next 7 years it will be hard to get a loan and the ones you get will be a higher interest.
Refer them to Your attorney. He will set them straight. He has the power to call and talk to the Judge.