Connecticut Debt Relief Attorney
If you are unable to pay your major obligations, such as your mortgage or credit card bills, and if your financial issues are a constant source of stress and worry, it is time to evaluate your options. Attorney Edward P. Jurkiewicz of Lawrence & Jurkiewicz, LLC, offers over 20 years of legal experience, and represents individuals and businesses in bankruptcy proceedings. Our law firm has helped clients throughout Connecticut get debt relief. Contact our office to discuss your situation.
Determining Whether Bankruptcy Is Right for You
In our free initial consultation, we can discuss your debts, your assets and your options. If we do decide that bankruptcy offers the debt relief you need, we will prepare and file your petition. Upon filing bankruptcy, the “automatic stay”, an injunction that prohibits any attempt to collect a debt, takes effect. This means that your creditors cannot take any action against you. Garnishments, lawsuits, foreclosures and any other actions must immediately stop.
A word about debt consolidation agencies: If you are thinking about working with a debt consolidation agency or a credit counseling agency to pay your creditors, we encourage you to think again. In most cases, these agencies do not deliver what they promise, after taking substantial fees up front that you could use for other purposes.
Helping Clients File Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
If we decide bankruptcy is right for you, your next decision will be whether or not you should file for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Chapter 7 bankruptcy is also referred to as a liquidation and offers a “fresh start”, which, generally speaking, frees you from personal liability on all of your debts. When you file Chapter 7, a bankruptcy “trustee” will be appointed to oversee the process. Any non-exempt assets will be liquidated, or sold, to pay off your creditors. Most people who file Chapter 7 have few, if any, non-exempt assets, so often, there is no “downside” to our clients. There will be a meeting, known as the creditor’s meeting, in which the trustee will ask you a number of questions. Your creditors will have the opportunity to attend but, practically speaking, few ever do. At the end of the process, you will receive a discharge. Generally, all of your personal liability on your debts will be discharged.
Chapter 13 bankruptcy is sometimes referred to as a “wage earner reorganization”, as it allows people with regular income to pay their debts over a three to five year period. If you are in default on your mortgage and want to try to keep your home, Chapter 13 will be your best option. Under Chapter 13, you can pay back your arrearages in a payment plan, while making regular payments. Chapter 13 is entirely voluntary on your part, so if the payment plan is not working out, you can voluntarily dismiss your case, or convert it to one under Chapter 7.
If you have a second mortgage or home equity line, Chapter 13 bankruptcy will allow you to discharge the mortgage under certain circumstances. This may occur if the value of the first mortgage exceeds the fair market value of the property, such that the second mortgage has no equity value at present. This process is known as “lien stripping”, and it offers a real benefit to homeowners. Through lien stripping, homeowners are able to enjoy any increase in value which would otherwise accrue to the bank.
Regardless of which option is right for you, our law firm will give you the counsel and guidance you need from the beginning to the end of the process.
Contact Attorney Edward P. Jurkiewicz Today •
We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code.