Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys

The Automatic Stay is quite possibly one of the most important tools in the Bankruptcy Code. The Automatic Stay is an injunction on all creditors, with limited exceptions, to immediately cease attempts to collect debt the moment a debtor files for bankruptcy relief. Some common examples of actions creditors cannot take against you once the Automatic Stay is initiated are: Sell your home at a foreclosure sale; Repossess your vehicle and sell it an auction; Initiate a lawsuit against you; Garnish your wages; Levy money from your bank account; Place liens on your assets. And the reason the above actions can’t be taken is because of the power the Automatic Stay possesses.

The stress of dealing with creditors becomes overwhelming after a certain point and most people to do not know where to turn. The thought that legal action could be taken, as mentioned above, amplifies that fear astronomically. Our team of compassionate and experienced bankruptcy attorneys deal with this on a daily basis and thoroughly understand how the Automatic Stay can alleviate that fear quickly. Contact our office for a free consultation and allow our highly skilled team of attorneys explain to you how the Automatic Stay can be a great tool for you to use.

In order for a creditor to levy your bank account, they must first be owed money and that obligation must have gone unpaid. The next step would be for the creditor to initiate a lawsuit against you for the money that you owe them. The goal of the lawsuit would be for the creditor to successfully have the Judge issue a Judgment in their favor for the sum of money that you owe them. Once that judgment is issued, the creditor would then request from the Court that a bank levy be initiated.

A bank levy is the process wherein a creditor gets legal authority from the Judge to withdraw money from your account without getting your authorization. The bank levy would be served on the bank where you have your accounts. From there, the bank would be legally required to withdraw the money from your account and send it to the creditor through the Sheriff’s office.

For example, let’s assume that the creditor has a judgment against you for $5,000. Then, the creditor gets a bank levy issued for that amount. In such a situation, you could start the day with $7,000 in your bank account and by the end of the day, be left with only $2,000.

Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys can use their legal skills to file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 on your behalf to stop the risk of having a bank levy issued against you.

The process of going through a divorce is something nobody plans for. There are lot of things that people consider when they are filing for divorce: Who gets the house? Who gets the kids? How much will the support payments be? Who gets the dog? How can I piss off my ex even more?

What regularly gets lost in all of that arguing and deliberating is: What happens to the debt? By the time people actually file for divorce, it is very common for the couple to have significant outstanding debt. Moreover, divorces are very lengthy and a lot more debt generally accrues during that time. One of the spouses might need to move out and rent a new residence. One of the spouses might need to purchase a new car. Also, hiring a divorce attorney, albeit is very important, is also costly. A divorce could also lead to one of the spouses defaulting on a joint obligation and now the creditor is coming after the “innocent” spouse for that money.

These are just a handful of reasons why we strongly recommend that if you feel that a divorce is on the horizon, you are in the midst of a divorce, or you have just finished a divorce, you should contact the experienced team at Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys ASAP to discuss what options you have with the debt that you have accrued or that your ex has left with you with through no fault of your own.

Filing for relief under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy code cover the vast majority of all bankruptcy filings in the Modesto area. When filing for Chapter 7, the Debtor (i.e. person filing) is essentially telling the Court and all creditors involved that they unfortunately do not have enough money to pay their obligations. Furthermore, they are giving authority to the Bankruptcy Court to review their assets in order to potentially liquidate their assets in order to pay the creditors. As scary as that might sound, the knowledgeable team at Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys will use their creativity and experience to fight to protect every asset that a person has.

The purpose to filing for Chapter 7 is to ultimately receive a discharge. The discharge is a Federal Court Order that eliminates your personal obligations to pay certain debts. Some of the most common debts that are discharged in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy are credit cards, personal loans, medical bills, and vehicle deficiency balances. By receiving the discharge, the creditors have no legal recourse against you at any point in the future.

To determine if Chapter 7 is the best option for you, here at Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys we offer free consultations in order for our attorneys to evaluate your case. You will have the chance to speak with one of our experienced bankruptcy attorneys who will take the time to understand your financial situation and provide you with the legal options that are best suited for you.

Filing for relief under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code is the process of entering into a reorganization of a person’s debts. The Bankruptcy Court allows Chapter 13 filers to pay back certain debts over a three to five-year period. At the end the of Chapter 13 case, the debtor discharges his/her obligations on the remaining debts.

There are various reasons one would look to file for Chapter 13 relief. Chapter 13 allows a person to cure delinquent payments owed on a mortgage to avoid a foreclosure. Chapter 13 allows a person that earns too much money to file Chapter 7 relief still have a legal remedy available to them to get that fresh start. Chapter 13 allows a person to pay off large tax obligations that would otherwise risk severe penalties if left unpaid. These are just a handful of reasons why filing for Chapter 13 could be extremely beneficial for your finances

To file Chapter 13 is a very complicated process that requires not only a great understanding of the Bankruptcy Code, but also of the Local Rules of the Court, of each local Bankruptcy Judge, and the specific Chapter 13 Trustee that would ultimately be assigned to the case. Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys have a vast amount of experience practicing in the local Bankruptcy Court and have confirmed hundreds of Chapter 13 plans. Our team will be able to thoroughly evaluate your case and navigate you through the difficult world of Chapter 13.

The Chapter 13 Plan is the instrument that lays out what the debtor intends to do with their various debts through the chapter 13 case. Typically, a chapter 13 lasts anywhere from 3 to 5 years. During that time, the debtor is making monthly payments to a chapter 13 trustee that they are assigned to. The Chapter 13 Plan controls what those monthly payments are and what the funds are to be used for. There are several different sections of the plan.

Creditors that are listed in Class 1 of the Plan are generally delinquent mortgage payments. The Chapter 13 Plan allows a debtor to cure their delinquent mortgage payments over the 3 to 5 years without the risk of falling further behind or facing a foreclosure. Creditors in Class 2 of the Chapter 13 Plan are actually further broken down into three separate sections: secured claims that are not being modified, secured claims that being modified to the fair market value of the asset, and secured claims are being valued at $0.00. These claims can be several different things but the most common ones are vehicle loans or junior deeds of trust depending on the value of the home.

Class 3 contains secured claims that are going to be surrendered through the chapter 13 case. Class 4 is the section where secured claims that are going to be paid directly to the lender (i.e. not through the trustee) are listed.

Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys carefully craft Chapter 13 Plans to maximize the debtor’s potential benefits. Our team of attorneys has over 18 years of experience developing Chapter 13 Plans in our local district. To find out more about how the Chapter 13 Plan could work for you, contact us for a free consultation.

An Emergency Bankruptcy, commonly referred to as a “Skeletal Bankruptcy”, is a tool that Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys use in certain circumstances in order to quickly and efficiently get the debtor the benefit of having the protection of a bankruptcy filing. Specifically, once an Emergency Bankruptcy is filed, creditors are disallowed from doing certain things. Our team has the ability to consult with a potential client, analyze the case, prepare the Emergency Bankruptcy documents, file the case, and notify the aggressive creditors all in the same day.

One of the most common reasons people look to file an Emergency Bankruptcy is to save their home from going into a foreclosure. Once the Emergency Bankruptcy is filed, your lender is no longer allowed to foreclose on your home. It is very common for debtors to fall behind on a mortgage payment, look for loss mitigation options with the lender, and be denied just days prior to the foreclosure sale occurring. We obviously do not recommend to wait until the 11^th hour to contact us but we have the team in place to provide you emergency assistance if necessary.

Moreover, another common reason to file an Emergency Bankruptcy is to avoid a wage garnishment from being initiated. A wage garnishment is a potential result of being sued by a creditor, that creditor winning a judgment against you, and then requesting from the Judge that they be allowed to take up to 25% of each of your paychecks until they are paid in full. If this occurs, your employer will be served a copy of the garnishment order and is then required to initiate the garnishment. By contacting Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys, we have the ability to get you in an Emergency Bankruptcy in order to stop the garnishment before it even starts.

Understanding how Exemptions work inside of your Bankruptcy case are crucial to the success of your case. Exemptions are listed on Schedule C of your filing. Exemptions are used to protect certain assets away from the reach of the Bankruptcy Court. Once an asset is exempt, the creditors are disallowed from recouping funds from that asset. The way Exemptions work depend on what Chapter of Bankruptcy you are filing.

In a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, the purpose of filing Exemptions is to protect your assets from being liquidated by the Trustee assigned to your case. In a Chapter 13 case, however, Exemptions are used to limit your exposure on how much you’re required to pay to the general unsecured creditors in your Chapter 13 Plan.

In the Modesto area, most debtors that file for Bankruptcy relief either use the 703 Exemptions or the 704 Exemptions. These are titled such due to the code section where they can be found in the California Code of Civil Procedure. Thus, in order to fully understand how to maximize a person’s exemptions, it should be noted that you need an excellent understating of both the Bankruptcy Code and the California Code of Civil Procedure. Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys have devoted their entire legal careers examining, studying, and practicing law based on the Bankruptcy Code and California Code of Civil Procedure. To understand more on how Exemptions can be used to your advantage, please contact our team and schedule a free initial consultation.

The 341 Hearing, also known as the Meeting of Creditors, is a required hearing that everyone that files for bankruptcy relief must attend and testify at. The name “341 Hearing” comes from the bankruptcy code section that requires the attendance at said hearing, 11 U.S.C. § 341. This hearing generally takes place approximately 30 days after the case is filed. Even though the name suggests that creditors would appear at the hearing and question you, it is actually not very common for creditors to even show up to these hearings.

However, your testimony at the 341 Hearing is highly important as the entire proceeding will be recorded and everything you state is under the penalty of perjury. The hearing will be administered by a bankruptcy trustee that has been assigned to your case. Due to the importance of the 341 Hearing, you should be fully prepared for this and not take it lightly.

Our team at Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys has attended over 1,000 of these 341 Hearings with our local bankruptcy trustees. Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys ensures that all of their clients are thoroughly prepared for the 341 Hearing and are absolutely comfortable prior to the scheduled date. If you have any questions regarding the 341 Hearing, please contact our highly skilled team at your earliest convenience.

Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys is comprised of a team of highly skilled Bankruptcy and Real Estate attorneys who understand how to use the Bankruptcy Code in their clients favor to avoid a foreclosure. In order to get to the step where a foreclosure is imminent, a lot of things must occur. Mortgage payments must be missed; options must be presented to the home owner; a Notice of Default must be filed and served by the lender; and finally, a sale date must be set.

The Bankruptcy Code is carefully crafted to allow people who are facing the above scenario some options to save the home and avoid the foreclosure. When a person files for Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, the automatic stay goes into place and immediately disallows a lender from completing the foreclosure sale. For example, if you are facing a foreclosure sale on a Thursday but you file for Chapter 13 relief on the Wednesday prior, the sale on Thursday would be required by law to be cancelled. There are, however, exceptions to that rule but are not extremely common.

Our team of attorneys thoroughly understand the process of Chapter 13 through over 18 years of legal experience. They have assisted hundreds of clients who are facing a foreclosure and are scared that they are going to be left homeless. If you are facing a foreclosure sale or have began struggling with your monthly mortgage payments, please contact our office and allow us to help you to save your home.

A lawsuit is a dispute between two parties wherein one party brings it to a court of law in order to reach adjudication of the claim. This generally occurs when one party owes money to the other and defaults on the repayment term.

For example, let’s assume Person A gave Person B a loan of $10,000.00. Furthermore, they agree that Person B will pay the loan back at a 5% interest rate with $400.00 monthly payments until paid in full. Fast forward 8 months and Person B loses his job and stops making the monthly payments. Person A attempts for three consecutive months to get Person B to start paying again but Person B is unable to. At this point, it would be logical for Person A to file a lawsuit in Civil Court against Person B for the remainder of the loan plus fees.

Once the lawsuit is filed, Person A must serve the lawsuit (i.e. Summons and Complaint) on Person B. Person B is then given 30 days to reply to the lawsuit. Person A is looking for a Judge to rule in his/her favor. If that were to happen, Person A would now have a legal Court Order stating that Person B owes Person A that money. Now Person A could now use the law in order to recoup that money, generally by either levying Person B’s bank account, garnishing his/her wages, or placing a lien on his/her assets.

Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys has more than 18 years of legal experience dealing with such situations. Our team has the knowledge and ability to act swiftly to stop the lawsuit process from moving forward. By contacting Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys, we can review the lawsuit with you and craft a detailed plan on how to get you immediate legal protection.

Understanding the complexity of the Means Test (i.e. Form 122; Statement of Current Monthly Income) is crucial to maximizing a debtor’s benefit of filing for bankruptcy relief. Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys pride themselves at dissecting the Means Test in order to get an advantageous result for their clients within the confines of the law.

The Means Test serves several purposes. For one, the Means Test will determine whether you qualify for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy is a type of bankruptcy filing that allows you to discharge certain obligations within approximately 3 to 4 months. The Means Test, among other things, will examine the prior 6 months of your income in a standardized test to determine what a person’s disposable income is. This will ultimately be a significant factor in the determination of whether a client will file for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 relief.

Moreover, if the client ends up filing for Chapter 13 relief, there are two additional significances of the Means Test. First, the results of the Means Test will dictate whether a client qualifies for a three-year Chapter 13 Plan or whether they will need to propose a five-year Chapter 13 Plan. Additionally, the results of the Means Test will show how much a person actually has to pay to his/her general unsecured debt.

To learn more about the Means Test in relation to your specific financial situation, contact Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys for a free consultation.

In the Court of Law, a Motion is a procedural tool used to bring a contested issue in front of a Judge for the purpose of the Judge issuing a decision on the matter. The person filing the Motion is commonly referred to as the Movant. Motion work in Bankruptcy cases is incredibly important on both the offensive and defensive end.

There are several Motions a debtor can file to increase the benefits that they receive in the Bankruptcy case. A Chapter 13 Debtor can file a Motion to Value for the purpose of getting a 2^nd Deed of Trust completely removed from their home. In addition, the same Debtor could also use the Motion to Value to “cram-down” the amount owed on a vehicle loan to the fair market value of that vehicle. Moreover, a Chapter 13 Debtor might need to file a Motion to Modify Plan in order to adjust the terms of the three to five-year Chapter 13 Plan they have committed to.

On the flip side, sometimes a Debtor is required to defend various Motions that are filed against him/her. A Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 Debtor could need to defend against a Motion for Relief from Automatic Stay to save a car or a home. Moreover, a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 Debtor could end up needing to defend against a Motion to Dismiss filed by an opposing party who is attempting to get the Bankruptcy case dismissed.

Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys thoroughly understand the intricacies of what is needed to both file and argue each of the Motions in a Bankruptcy case and to defend against them. To further discuss any of the above Motions, or any other Motion relevant to the Bankruptcy case, please contact Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys for a free consultation.

Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys pride themselves in devoting their time and energy to ensure a person is completely prepared for their bankruptcy filing. Filing for Bankruptcy relief is a big step and one that you should not take lightly. Thus, the days, weeks, and even months leading up to the actual Bankruptcy filing are incredibly important. If a person is not 100% prepared for what is to come, they could end up getting themselves into a much bigger problem than they were already in.

Preparing for a Bankruptcy filing has many different components to it. A person that is interested in filing for Bankruptcy relief needs to have stopped using their creditors in anticipation of the filing. If not, based on the timeline the Bankruptcy Code provides, the Debtor could end up owing certain money back to their creditors. Moreover, preparing for bankruptcy requires certain documents be gathered. Without these documents, it would be impossible to accurately fill all of the documentation out.

Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys has over 18 years of experience in practicing law and have an extremely reliable system down. Our team uses our streamlined system to ensure that a client is 100% prepared for the filing, the process is completed as smooth as possible, and all potential issues are discussed with the client and hopefully resolved prior to filing.

One of the most misunderstood items in a Bankruptcy filing is the effect on a second mortgage or home equity line of credit. Filing for Bankruptcy relief, depending on the specific facts of your case, can do amazing things to that second mortgage. Contact Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys today to learn more.

In a Chapter 13 filing, the Debtor could invoke and use to his/her advantage the powers of 11 U.S.C. § 506. This code section works as follows: If you are able to prove to the Court and the creditor(s) involved that the value of the home is less than the amount owed on the superior lien(s) on the home, through a Motion to Value Collateral, you could get that junior lien fully removed from the title and you would have no obligation to ever pay on it again.

Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys has successfully completed this process for numerous Chapter 13 debtors. Not only do we have the writing skills to carefully craft the proper Motion and related documents to file with the Court, but our team of Bankruptcy attorneys also has the courtroom experience to successfully argue the Motion in front of the Bankruptcy Judges in the Modesto area.

If you are interested in discussing your second mortgage and the options you have with it, please contact Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys at your earliest convenience.

With everything going in today’s world, nothing is said to be certain in one’s life, except death and taxes. As taxes will be something most people will deal with from the moment they get their first job until their unfortunate death, there are plenty of chances a person has through their life where they could end up with a large tax obligation. If you are facing an unsurmountable amount of tax debt and aren’t sure what to do, please contact Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys and our team of Bankruptcy and Tax Attorneys will evaluate your situation and provide you with legal options that you can invoke.

Even though tax obligations aren’t always discharged in a bankruptcy filing, there are still circumstances where they in fact are. In order to discharge your obligation to pay past taxes, there are three main concepts a person needs to look at: (1) The age of the tax debt; (2) The last assessment date of the tax debt; and (3) The actual dates you filed the specific tax returns. Even if you are unable to discharge your obligations on the tax debt, our team can potentially set you up in a three to five-year repayment plan in Chapter 13 Bankruptcy to repay the tax obligations.

To have your case thoroughly examined by professional Bankruptcy and Tax Attorneys, please contact Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys for your free initial consultation.

A vehicle repossession can provide many negative impacts on a person’s life. You could be left without alternate transportation; have the embarrassment of having a tow truck show up to your house and take your car away; face astronomical fees from the tow company; have your vehicle sold at an auction and be sent a bill for the deficiency balance owed.

Our team at Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys has dealt with this situation countless times in the past and understand exactly what legal remedies a person has. Our team breaks down the vehicle repossession situations into two categories: a person that wants their car returned to them ASAP or a person that just wants the deficiency balance discharged.

For the people that want the vehicle returned to them, our team can quickly act and file a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy case prior to the vehicle being sold at auction. If correctly done, the lender and tow yard would be required to return the vehicle to you. On the other hand, if you are just looking to wash your hands clean of the vehicle and can no longer afford to pay the deficiency balance owed, our team would look into filing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy on your behalf in order to eliminate your obligation to pay on that debt anymore.

Please contact Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys immediately if you have suffered from a vehicle repossession, are scared that you might soon suffer from a vehicle repossession, or just want to discuss what our office can do when it comes to vehicle repossessions in general.

A Wage Garnishment, also known as an earnings withholding order, is the process by which a creditor that is owed money can legally take money directly from your paychecks until they are paid in full. Per California Law, the creditor can take up 25% of your take-home pay. So, if you are normally bringing home $1,000.00 per paycheck, the Wage Garnishment would reduce that so you would only be left with $750.00 per paycheck.

In order to get to the Wage Garnishment phase, several things must occur. Generally speaking, the creditor will first initiate a lawsuit against you for the money that you owe them plus any fees and/or interest that have accrued. Once that lawsuit is filed, you will be given a 30-day period where you can file a reply to that lawsuit (i.e. Answer). If that is not timely done, or the Judge rules against you regardless of the Answer that you filed, the creditor would then be issued a Judgment against you. With the Judgment in-hand, the creditor could then request that the Judge approve a Wage Garnishment. Once that’s been issued, the creditor would serve a copy directly to your employer and your employer would then legally be required to comply with Wage Garnishment Order.

By contacting our team of highly trained and skilled bankruptcy attorneys, we can evaluate your case and provide you with your legal options. Of your legal options, if a bankruptcy is the legal route that you decide to take, the filing of the bankruptcy case initiates the Automatic Stay and this would disallow the creditor from continuing with the Wage Garnishment. Please contact Modesto Bankruptcy Attorneys if you would like to discuss your options with a Wage Garnishment further.