All of us are subject to drastic lifestyle changes that can have a negative impact on our finances, making it difficult to pay bills. It could be loss of income due to unemployment or reduced hours, a divorce, loss of a spouse, business failure or prolonged illness or medical emergency. The fact is that we never know when we might find ourselves facing a financial crisis due to a lifestyle change.

Charles*, a previous client of mine offered to share his personal bankruptcy story, in hopes that if you are facing a similar situation you might seek help and find comfort in the fact that you are not alone. I am grateful Charles is sharing his story because his experience is the epitome of financial situations taking a turn for the worse, and there was nothing he could do about it. I think many debtors relate to his situation and his emotional struggle to reach out for help.

Divorce and bankruptcy are both realities of life for many individuals. No one sets out in a marriage with the intent to file for divorce just as no one sets out in life with the intent of filing a bankruptcy. However, if divorce and bankruptcy are a future you are preparing for, you’ll need the experience and guidance of an experienced bankruptcy attorney.

Hello, my name is Jane. I am just an average working woman, trying to make ends meet and keep the bills paid. In my mind, bankruptcy should only be relied upon when things are beyond control. However, in my experience, I know that situations can easily and quickly spin out of control. Throw one wrench into a perfectly planned and executed budget – like an unexpected car accident that results in thousands of dollars in unpaid medical bills and a vehicle purchase to replace the one that was totaled – and there you are again, buried in debt.

Most people assume that the only benefit they will receive from a personal bankruptcy is debt elimination. However, personal bankruptcy does more than simply eliminate your debts. Personal bankruptcy aims to treat the cause that brought you to the bankruptcy court, as well as addressing the symptoms of a financial crisis. For example, filing a bankruptcy case will not only eliminate the debt associated with these top five reasons people fall into debt, it will also help them address the symptoms that built up to cause financial crisis.

We receive calls every day from people just like you who are trying to pay their bills but have suffered a financial crisis and have fallen behind. They report that creditors and collection agencies are threatening to take their homes, garnish their wages or levy their bank accounts unless the bill is paid immediately. We hear horror stories of collection agents repeatedly calling their homes, their families or their place of employment to scare them into paying their debts. Angry collection agents bang on their doors or yell into the phone using abusive language and threatening legal action if the bill is not paid. All of these actions are considered creditor harassment and you have rights to make them stop.

The decision to file a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case is not something that most individuals take lightly. It is only after thorough consideration, and with the advice of an experienced bankruptcy attorney, that most individuals commit to reorganizing their debts through the bankruptcy process. Filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy has many benefits, including saving your home from foreclosure, stopping repossession and even keeping you from going to jail if you are behind on domestic support obligations. However, one major advantage that is often overlooked about filing a Chapter 13 case is the appointment of a Chapter 13 Trustee.

Some people are faced with taxes that they cannot pay because of a lost job or the loss of a spouse’s income. Others may have increased the number of exemptions they claimed during the recession so they could put more money into their pockets each pay period and they are now facing huge tax bills. Whatever the reason may be for owing back taxes, bankruptcy may have the solution for your tax problems. Most personal taxes are not eligible for a discharge through bankruptcy; however, there are exceptions to the general rule. Plus, filing bankruptcy can help you with your back taxes in other ways.

Our aim in this blog is not to discredit or offend other attorneys; our purpose is to inform individuals of the benefits of hiring a Minnesota bankruptcy lawyer verses a general practice attorney when you are contemplating filing bankruptcy. There are some types of law that are very specific and unique in how they are practiced and the rules that govern them that they require a special expertise in order to effectively represent clients. Bankruptcy comes to our mind because that is our specialty, but others include tax law, international corporate law, complex product liability and copyright and patent law.

Debt is stressful and facing debt problems alone can be overwhelming. That is why you need experienced Bankruptcy Attorneys in Roseville, MN you can trust working on your behalf to find a cost-effective solution to your debt problem. Dealing with debt collectors and collection agencies while trying to provide for your family can leave you feeling as if there is no hope.

For many debtors, debt consolidation programs do not work. In fact, many people who file bankruptcy have already tried to resolve their debt problems by contacting one of the many debt consolidation programs that are advertised. These companies claim that they can resolve debt problems for pennies on the dollar, when in fact they are more concerned about making a profit than finding real debt solutions for their clients.

What happens when you file bankruptcy? Firstly, the automatic stay provisions under the Bankruptcy Code prohibit your creditors from contacting you regarding your debt. Filing bankruptcy stops creditor harassment and those annoying and frustrating creditor calls. However, you are probably wondering what the process looks like - when will you have to go to court, how many times, what a trustee does, how long it takes, etc. We answer questions like these each day as bankruptcy attorneys.

Congratulations, you have successfully completed your bankruptcy and you are ready to take your first steps on the road to rebuilding your finances. A very important element of any sound financial plan is budgeting. Some people believe that budgeting is too difficult or that budgeting is only a way of denying yourself what you truly want. On the contrary, budgeting makes it possible for you to achieve the things you want by helping you manage your money. Budgeting can also help you save more money by revealing any issues or incongruences between your income and your expenses.

Student loan debt is a serious problem in America. As an increasing number of individuals choose to further their education by taking college courses, the amount owed from student loans has inched increasingly higher each year. Student loan debt now exceeds credit card debt as the leading debt problem in America. Currently, there is about $1.2 trillion in student loans owed by college graduates and current students. College graduates are completing their education and entering the job market burdened with a crushing debt load and years of student loan payments ahead of them.

If you have ever experienced a financial crisis or have gotten behind on payments to a creditor, you have probably dealt with a collection agency. A collection agency is a company that is hired by your credit card company to collect the debt you owe on your credit card. Collection agencies use different tactics to collect debt but a collection agency can also be more flexible in arranging for repayment of that debt. However, once your credit card account is turned over to a collection agency, you will likely begin to feel the impact, for example: