So, you are thinking about filing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and you say to yourself, I don’t want to lose my Harley Davidson Some folks are a lot like me, they have high anxiety and want to know who exactly is involved in this process and what do they do?
Well, here we go! First, to have any players at all you must have a debtor/client. This is the person who filed the petition with the bankruptcy court seeking relief from their debts. We wouldn’t have a bankruptcy system if we didn’t have someone overwhelmed with debt. A debtor can be a single person, a married couple, or a corporation. Along with a debtor, we have the debtor’s attorney. This is a person who is a licensed attorney in the state you reside in and who helps you understand what Chapter 7 Bankruptcy is and what the process looks like. The attorney also prepares and files the necessary paperwork with the court. The attorney attends the 341 meeting with you and deals with your creditors and the bankruptcy court.
Next, to have a debtor you must have a creditor, the entity to whom money is owed. A creditor is any entity that purports to have a claim against you. Creditors must get notified of your bankruptcy filing or they are not part of your bankruptcy.
If we have creditors, often times, creditors hire lawyers to represent their interests in the bankruptcy proceeding. Creditor’s lawyers deal with debtor’s lawyer in conveying messages and agreements between creditor and debtor.
A Chapter 7 trustee’s job is to administer the estate and disburse proceeds that may come into the estate to creditors based on a priority system pro rata.
Finally, we have bankruptcy judges whose job it is to referee disputes that occasionally arise amongst debtors and creditors and sometimes even between creditors and other creditors. Disputes can also arise between debtor and trustee and trustee and creditors.
When the time is right, or when you are ready, reach out to Minnesota’s HIGHEST GOOGLE reviewed bankruptcy law firm at www.kainscott.com. You will be glad you did!