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Dumbest Thing For Those In Debt

By Cathy Moran

dealing with debt

The headline was compelling:  The 5 Dumbest Things You Can Do If You Have Too Much Debt. I even liked the site’s name:  How Life Works.  That’s a tagline I’d like to use. I could make my own list of dumb ways to tackle debt, but better if someone else had already done it. Until […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, Featured

Do I Have To File Bankruptcy Before There’s A Judgment?

By Cathy Moran

time to discharge judgment

Can I discharge a judgment once it’s entered, was the first question the caller asked. Do I have time to file bankruptcy? The caller was sure he had to file bankruptcy before the court entered judgment or he’d be stuck with the judgment forever. Not so. Bankruptcy discharges judgments. And, a judgment in California does not […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, Strictly California Tagged With: bankruptcy, discharge, judgment

7 Essentials For Better Results From Filing Bankruptcy

By Cathy Moran

before filing bankruptcy

Plan before filing bankruptcy and you get better, more certain relief. Even if you’re not quite sure that you’re ready to take the bankruptcy plunge, scout the bankruptcy territory. Take some time to learn the rules and explore ways to maximize the relief available in bankruptcy. If you don’t plan ahead and just rush into […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, Featured Tagged With: 2021, means test

Are You Better Off With Bankruptcy?

By Cathy Moran

Bankruptcy trends meaningless

Who cares whether bankruptcy filings are up or down? Bankruptcy professionals, certainly. Economists, probably. But if it’s you and your checkbook, you take little comfort that lots of others are filing.  Nor, when everyone else seems to be making it OK  while you flounder, are you reassured. My colleague Wendell Sherk is right about bankruptcy […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, Consumer Rights, Pondering

The Secret Alternative To Bankruptcy

By Cathy Moran

alternatives to bankruptcy

Looking for the secret alternative to bankruptcy which will solve your debt problems without filing? Why not? Ads for debt settlement companies and do-it-yourself books always promise to reveal the tricks to make your bills vanish for pennies, without resort to bankruptcy. (Isn’t it interesting that these “secrets” are known only by people who want […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy Tagged With: 2016, bankruptcy alternatives

Surefire Steps To Avoid Bankruptcy

By Cathy Moran

Most people would rather parade naked down Main Street than file bankruptcy. Bankruptcy makes them feel exposed, defeated, ashamed. They’ll do anything to avoid bankruptcy. If you don’t want to go there, you can order your life so you don’t ever need bankruptcy relief from debts you can’t pay. I’ve figured out the formula that assures […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, Featured

Damaged Credit Reports Heal

By Cathy Moran

damaged credit

Will filing bankruptcy hurt my credit? Probably. Should that hit to your credit keep from filing bankruptcy?  Not by a long shot. Incredibly, I encounter people drowning in debt who think their credit report is more important than their financial health. Their thinking seems to be that credit, once damaged, is never the same. It’s not […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, Featured, Life after bankruptcy Tagged With: credit heals, damaged credit

What Happens To My Stuff In Different Bankruptcy Chapters

By Cathy Moran

Chapter 7 v. 13

Will it be Chapter 7 v. 13? After you’ve made the decision to get a fresh start, you need to choose a bankruptcy chapter, usually Chapter 7 or Chapter 13. The choice of chapter is complex, involving many interconnected factors. Here we’re going to compare just the treatment of different kinds of assets in Chapter […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, Consumer Rights Tagged With: 2021, chapters

Consider The Clawback of Pre-bankruptcy Transfers Before Filing

By Cathy Moran

bankruptcy clawback

If you don’t understand clawback in bankruptcy, you might think that bankruptcy involves only what you have when you file. But that’s not how it works. Bankruptcy law gives a bankruptcy trustee to power to unwind transactions and transfers that diminish what the debtor has on the day the case is filed. The idea is […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, How bankruptcy works Tagged With: 2022, avoidance, fraudulent transfer, preference

Bankruptcy Is Not Your Last Resort

By Cathy Moran

bankruptcy choice

Every personal finance guru intones that “bankruptcy is the last resort.” In my opinion, they have it wrong: bankruptcy is the big gun in getting out of a financial mess. But it shouldn’t be the last thing you try to get financially healthy. You shouldn’t mess around with lesser solutions if they don’t fit. Some […]

Filed Under: Considering Bankruptcy, Consumer Rights Tagged With: 2017

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Bankruptcy Basics

About The Soapbox

You’ve arrived at the Bankruptcy Soapbox, a resource of bankruptcy information and consumer law.

Soapbox is a companion site to Bankruptcy in Brief, where I try to be largely explanatory and even handed (Note I said “try”).

Here, I allow myself to tell stories and express strong opinions. We dig deeper into how to consider bankruptcy and navigate a bankruptcy case.

Moran Law Group
Bankruptcy specialists for individuals and small businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area

How Bankruptcy Works

What Happens To Your Bank Account in Chapter 13

Those considering filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy worry about "what happens to my bank account?" Will the trustee take all the money? How do I pay my living expenses after I file? The short answer is: nothing changes. The account remains yours and available for all the expenses of day to day living. Because, … Read more

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