Life is humbling is it not? Who among us starts out in life with the dream of incurring overwhelming debt we cannot pay for? Naturally, none of us do. And yet, it happens to 10,000 plus Minnesotans each year. At Kain & Scott, we have been practicing bankruptcy law since 1972. We have never seen a person yet who says something like- hey, I just got back from a fabulous trip with all my friends, using my credit cards, knowing I was going to file bankruptcy when I returned.

I was born near the tranquil backwaters of the Mississippi river in a small Minnesota town, called Foley, Minnesota. I was one of 9 children brought up in a home that was built in 1901 using square headed nails! My dad was a factory worker and my mom was a stay home mom and entrepreneur (she babysat up to five more kids!). We grew up poor but rich with family values and small hometown spirit. I knew growing up we were poor but you never really felt that way. It’s hard to feel poor with a family of 11 growing up in a small town- living a simple lifestyle. Heck, everyone around us was poor too so we didn’t know any better anyway.

I often tell clients that banks don’t care if you pay your creditors. What? How can that be? I thought credit scores and paying your creditors was the most important thing to banks when they look at the decision to either lend you money or not. Turns out, that is not always true. Let’s look at a case study to illustrate the point.

Article I, section 8, clause 4 of the United States Constitution states that . . . ”The Congress shall have the power to establish . . . uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States . . . ” And so it is that the framers of the Constitution envisioned that the people of the United States would have the right to File Bankruptcy in the United States and that Congress will have the power to establish uniform bankruptcy laws throughout the United States. When you hear of individuals having a Constitutional right to file a bankruptcy, that is a bit of a misnomer. Technically, the US Constitution gives the Congress the power to give you the right it does not give you the right to file bankruptcy directly in the Constitution.

Have you ever had the experience of buying a piece of furniture that was in a box, not yet assembled? Oh how I hate and I mean HATE assembling furniture. You take everything out of the box, lay it on the floor, and think well this doesn’t look that complicated. So, without further ado, you start screwing this together, and that piece with this piece and things are going fairly well. And then it happens, you are 2/3 finished when a piece of the furniture remains and the furniture just doesn’t quite look right- right?

Suffering from overwhelming debt is crushing and draining physically and mentally. When the weight of debt is upon your shoulders you may feel like you are the only one experiencing overwhelming debt. Trust us, you are not alone. Life can be very humbling. Have you ever gone to a medical clinic for an infection? Maybe the infection was in an embarrassing location on your body? I doubt highly the medical professionals find your infection or it’s location interesting at all. In fact, their job is to hear about your problem, see the problem, diagnose the problem, and then solve the problem. This is what to expect when you file wIth our maple grove bankruptcy attorneys.

At Kain & Scott, we get the question all the time, "What happens to my credit score if i file bankruptcy?" It is a question that concerns every Minnesota debtor facing bankruptcy and wondering what the bankruptcy aftermath looks like. I am high anxiety so I would be asking the same question too. Fortunately, what makes up your credit score and how bankruptcy affects it is a lot better than you would think.

What is a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy? How does it work? Could it be the answer to our national student debt crisis? Possibly! We have a conference call scheduled with Senator Amy Klobuchar’s office on February 17, 2016 to discuss this very possibility. Chapter 13 could be the answer to our Student Debt Crisis forever! Help us fight to free students from the bonds of student loans for the rest of their lives. 

Let’s face it. There are numerous articles written about how to file bankruptcy on the internet. You can literally type in a search phrase and with the click of a button you’ll have millions of pages to look at. But with such a vast amount of information, if you have no legal education or experience, where do you even start? How are you supposed to know what is true and correct and if the authors are trustworthy? This is one of the biggest problems with the free bankruptcy resources on the internet today. At first glance, filing bankruptcy without the assistance of the Roseville Bankruptcy Attorneys might look easy but the deeper you dig into bankruptcy law the more complex you’ll find it.

Imagine… you’ve fast forwarded your life a few days and you no longer have any those pesty creditors or debt collectors calling, writing and harassing you demanding payments. All collection activity, including lawsuits, wage garnishments, levies, foreclosures and repossessions has stopped. A few months later, by law, you are legally debt-free! All of your department store cards, credit cards, utility bills, medical bills and unsecured loans have been discharged and life is good! Most people in a serious financial pinch, struggling and stressing about overwhelming debt, would give anything for this. Fortunately, this is what you can expect from the Maple Grove Bankruptcy Attorneys at Kain & Scott. And there's more:

When you're experiencing a business failure, income drop, divorce or medical problem or any type of financial struggle that you feel like you just can't escape, you're not alone! On average this happens to thousands of Minnesota residents every year leaving them with their best option to file bankruptcy. Just last year over 10,000 Minnesotan's needed to file a Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 Bankruptcy to restore their 1st class citizenship again. It can happen to anyone. Even some of our own family members have filed bankruptcy. Fortunately, at Kain & Scott P.A., Maple Grove's nicest bankruptcy law firm, there are just 5 easy steps you need to take to get yourself on the road to a debt-free life again!

Are you struggling with debts that you cannot pay? Are creditors calling you at home and at work? Have you received threatening letters, been served with a debt collection lawsuit, or are facing a foreclosure or repossession? You may have considered filing bankruptcy to resolve your debt problem but are unsure if a bankruptcy is the best way to get rid of your debt. You may have heard that you will lose all of your property if you file bankruptcy or that you will never qualify for credit if you file bankruptcy.

Are you having trouble paying your bills? Are creditors calling your workplace or calling family members for information? Have you been served with a foreclosure complaint or a debt collection lawsuit? If so, you may need to file bankruptcy to get rid of your debt. People file bankruptcy for several reasons — unemployment, medical bills, divorce, loss of a spouse, and business failure.

The new year is a time for new beginnings, and if you haven’t already done so, it is time to make your New Year's resolutions for 2016. If you are living with overwhelming debt, this year’s resolution should be easy to determine – take control of your finances and improve your financial well-being in 2016. To make your New Year’s resolution easier to attain, we’ve compiled a list of several tools you can use to reach your goal.