If you live in or around Eden Prairie, Minnesota there is an easy way to determine if you file bankruptcy, which Chapter you will end up in. For those of you who have the ability to make a payment back to your creditors, you must do so. For those of you who cannot make a payment back to your creditors you likely will not be doing so.

If you are looking for a bankruptcy lawyer, a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 Bankruptcy law firm in Roseville, Minnesota, there are some things you need to be aware of. Before scheduling an appointment with a law firm, you should really take 5 minutes to research the law firm you're interested in. 5 minutes could save you a lot of head ache down the road. You don’t want to be like a client who says, “I only wish I would have read more reviews on the firm before scheduling an appointment.” We hear this all the time from clients who were dissatisfied with other law firms.

The single biggest complaint we receive from clients who used other law firms and had a bad experience with them, is this: “I wish I would have read more reviews BEFORE scheduling an appointment with the law firm.” In other words, had prospective clients simply taken a few more minutes to read, like binge read, the law firm’s Google reviews, the client would never have scheduled an appointment with the law firm to begin with and would have avoided a lot of pain. I feel bad for these clients.

Unfortunately, there are some law firms that lease a small space, stick a Google Map Listing on it, and call it a law office. In reality, these small spaces are occupied by someone from the law firm very sparingly. A prospective client looking at their advertisement and seeing their business hours may think the law firm has a formidable presence in Eden Prairie, when they do not. It is designed to be a mirage. A bait and switch if you will; to draw you into calling that law firm first and not someone else.

When you file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy with the bankruptcy court, you are invoking the power of the court to put into place an immediate court order restricting your creditors from collecting from you on most pre-petition debts. It is an awesome power debtors have. The focus in a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy is primarily on debtor’s assets. Debtor(s) are required to fully disclose all their assets wherever located in the world. The purpose of this is to show a Chapter 7 trustee, and creditors, what debtor owns for assets and are those assets exempt or non-exempt?

One of the most common questions from our bankruptcy clients that we encounter daily is “Can I stop paying my bills?” The answer is an emphatic “YES!” In fact, not only CAN you stop paying your bills, but you SHOULD stop paying your bills!

I am high anxiety. I totally understand the anxiety of bankruptcy and the thought of filing bankruptcy. And yet, hundreds of thousands of Americans muscle their way through the bankruptcy process each year. In Minnesota, on an average year, over 13,000 Minnesotans file bankruptcy and get on with their lives. Right, now, as you read this blog there are thousands of Minnesotans just like you contemplating the thought of filing bankruptcy or who are actually in the process of filing bankruptcy and getting their lives back.

A lot of people who live in and around Eden Prairie, Minnesota want to know if they qualify to file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. To qualify for a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy you must not have filed a previous Chapter 7 Bankruptcy (where you received a discharge) in a case filed in the previous 8 years. You also do not qualify for a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy discharge if you filed a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy within the previous 6 years (and where you received a Chapter 13 discharge).

You might ask, why does this matter? Trust me, it matters a lot. People who file bankruptcy don’t tend to broadcast they have filed bankruptcy on social media. Would you? So for anyone who has filed bankruptcy to leave a Google review--- that is a big deal. Most people do not leave Google reviews unless very upset or very happy. You don’t see a lot of people feeling luke warm about a business willing to leave that business a review, right? I mean when is the last time you left a gas station a review, like great gas guys!? You just don’t right? Now, if the clerk at the gas station swore at you and threw a loaf of bread at you, you might write a nasty bad review right?

COVID 19 is the pin prick that will burst the economy and shatter what we consider to be a “normal” economy for a long time to come. The financial devastation can be seen all around you. Vacant store fronts, vacant factories, and millions of people out of work. We still have not fully dealt with the debt problems we were in in the last financial crisis of 2008. The, the Federal Reserve just stoked the fire by pumping trillions of dollars into the economy resulting in an enormous amount of debt lingering from the last financial storm. And now, well now the financial devastation caused by COVID 19 is creating even more debt problems with a Fed that is really out of most of its ammunition to help in any meaningful way.

Several years ago I met with a couple who had previously met with a lawyer about bankruptcy. They told me they had to meet him in a shed like building and it was totally weird. And then things got even weirder. It turns out the lawyer, in the middle of a consultation, actually fell asleep. Not wanting to disturb the sleeping lawyer, the couple quietly got up and walked out. Sometime later, the lawyer actually called this coupled and asked, “well, are you going to hire me to do your bankruptcy?”

First of all, congratulations on having the courage necessary to face debt head on. Each day, thousands of Minnesotans suffer needlessly with debt. Second, once you have decided to solve the debt crisis for good, next you have to pick St. Cloud, Minnesota’s best bankruptcy law firm. How do you make sure you have the best bankruptcy attorney in St. Cloud, Minnesota? You do research!

In a chapter 13 case with priority tax claims, the debtor must pay these claims in full if the chapter 13 plan is to be confirmed. When the priority tax claim arises under § 507(a)(8)(C), such tax claims are an exception to the discharge under the general rule of § 1328.

Preferential transfers to creditors may be avoided under Section 547(b) of the Bankruptcy Code, if the transfer was made on or within 90 days before the date of the filing of the petition. In a Chapter 7 case, the appointed trustee steps into the debtor’s shoes, taking control of the debtor’s assets and seeing that every effort is made to enhance the estate for full distribution to the creditors. The Chapter 7 trustee increases the assets of the estate by avoiding a preferential transfer.

If you live within a 50 miles radius of St. Cloud, Minnesota, do like most people do, and turn to Kain & Scott if you are contemplating bankruptcy. Since 1972, area residents have trusted Kain & Scott to deliver the most kind, helpful, professional, and exceptional customer service to our residents suffering from overwhelming debt. Each year, hundreds of area residents use Kain & Scott to get their lives back---you can too.

I know of a single way to determine if you should file bankruptcy. At Kain & Scott we have been around since 1972. We have seen all the reasons for people to file bankruptcy. Every single one of these people are good Minnesotans who simply fell on hard times. Over and over we see the same themes which propel good people into bankruptcy.