I probably answer over a hundred questions for my clients each week. Unfortunately, my answers are often long, complicated or the oh-so-helpful “it depends.” Luckily, once in a while, I get a question like the one in the title of this article, and I get to give a simple, easy to understand answer. “No.” I […]
CHAPTER 13 BANKRUPTCY: WHEN IS MY FIRST PAYMENT DUE?
Under the Bankruptcy Code, your first payment is due “not later than 30 days after the date of the filing of the plan or the order for relief.” 11 U.S.C. § 1326(a)(1). This means that once a case is filed, the trustee must have a payment in hand within 30 days. A payment mailed on […]
CHAPTER 7 BANKRUPTCY: NEGOTIATING A BETTER DEAL ON YOUR SECURED DEBT
The purpose of filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy is to discharge debt. However, discharging debt doesn’t remove liens on secured property, so although your liability for repaying a debt may be discharged, if you don’t continue making payments to secured creditors, they will likely enforce their lien through foreclosure or repossession. Debtors who wish to keep […]
CHAPTER 7 BANKRUPTCY: REDEEMING SECURED PROPERTY
One of the benefits of filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy is that you can sometimes cram down secured debt on vehicles. This means that you can force a creditor to accept repayment of a loan by paying the value of the vehicle rather than the entire claim. Chapter 7 bankruptcy has a similar tool available to […]
DALLAS BANKRUPTCY ATTORNEY: DON’T FALL FOR DEBT COLLECTION SCAMS!
When you are in debt, sometimes it can be difficult to keep track of who you owe money, because creditors get bought out, change names, and turn the debt over to collection agencies or law firms. Con artists are taking advantage of this fact. Dozens of people have called Cooper’s Consumer Protection Division to report […]