One notable update to Minn. Stat. § 550.37 was subdivision (c). This exemption specifically allows the debtor to exempt, not to exceed a certain dollar value, any jewelry. Prior to the update, the exemption was limited to the debtor’s wedding band and the exemption itself had very specific language on what qualified as a wedding band and therefore within the purview of the exemption.
Jewelry is one of those items that can have a lot of sentimental value for people, and your grandmother’s ring, would have been liquidatable under the previous exemption scheme. The debtor had a hard choice between a fresh start, and an item that had been in their family for generations.
Another update to 550.37 was subdivision (b). The revision to the exemption did a lot for electronics. Laws are slow to change and the previous statute left many necessary electronic non-exempt and subject to the bankruptcy estate. The new exemption allows for tablets, computers, and smart phones to be included in the exempted assets.
Prior to the revisions, the value for the motor vehicle exemption was low, causing many filers to have partially non-exempt vehicles. And, in a liquidation case, it can cause real strife, if your vehicle is liquidated and you have no other mode of transportation.
Lastly, and likely the most impactful revision to Minn. Stat. § 550.37 was the Wildcard exemption. This means for the first time debtors can protect those assets that are typically not exempt. Including firearms, boats, 4wheelers, stocks, funds in the bank accounts and tax refunds.
These revisions have substantially benefited debtors. Bankruptcy is meant to give a debtor a fresh start, but it is also meant to be fair and balanced to the creditors.
With the recent revisions, more debtors will be entitled to a true fresh start, whereas the revisions are still fair to the creditors. Contact the attorneys at LifeBackLaw and see us at www.LifeBackLaw.com and let us help you get your life back.