If you’re facing debt you know you can’t repay and it’s so severe it significantly damages your standard of living, you might find permanent relief with a bankruptcy filing. When you file for any type of individual consumer bankruptcy, your creditors will have the automatic stay preventing them from collecting on your debts. For the time that your bankruptcy case is pending, the automatic stay is maintained. This means that bankruptcy can be one of the most effective ways to prevent foreclosures, utility shut-offs, wage garnishments, evictions, and other consequences of having delinquent debts. For individual consumer bankruptcy, the timeline can be as short as a few months or as long as five years. It all depends on what chapter you file for and your own financial situation. With the help of a Behm Law Group, Ltd. bankruptcy lawyer in Mankato, MN and the surrounding areas, you can build a strong case for your bankruptcy and find long-term debt relief.
Stop Creditor Collection
If you’re in a situation where you need to stop creditor collection or foreclosure activities immediately and you can’t wait through the typical time it takes to prepare a complete bankruptcy petition, you can file something called a “skeletal” or emergency bankruptcy. This kind of filing goes through the online court system just like a normal bankruptcy filing and it often only takes a few minutes. An online skeletal petition will immediately prevent your creditors from taking further collection actions because the automatic stay injunctive mandates of 11 U.S.C. § 362 will be immediately imposed against them.
Emergency Bankruptcy
A skeletal or emergency bankruptcy petition is not a different kind of bankruptcy. Rather it is only the very first part of the bankruptcy pleadings you must file and it is incomplete. A skeletal or emergency bankruptcy petition consists of the basic bankruptcy petition (which includes personal identity information, the chapter you’re filing, and general information), the names, addresses, and contact information for all your creditors, a certificate of your completion of credit counseling, and your B121 form. A skeletal bankruptcy will also require payment of the bankruptcy fee or the request of a waiver.
Time Limits
After your skeletal or emergency petition is filed, the bankruptcy court will issue an order giving you fourteen (14) days to file the remaining fifty-plus pages of your bankruptcy petition paperwork. If the remaining paperwork is not filed within fourteen (14) days, your bankruptcy case will be dismissed. The automatic stay will also be terminated and your creditors will be able to resume collection activities against you. However, the bankruptcy court will grant an extension of the fourteen (14) day period upon your timely request.
Bankruptcy Lawyer
Filing any case without the help of a bankruptcy lawyer can be difficult due to the nuances and complexities of the bankruptcy code and the rigorous paperwork requirements. Because the process of filing a skeletal or emergency bankruptcy is subject to strict timelines, it can be even more challenging to file without professional assistance.
When you work with a Behm Law Group, Ltd. bankruptcy lawyer in Mankato, MN and the neighboring areas for your skeletal/emergency or regular case, you can count on our guidance and protection to take you from start to finish of your bankruptcy. Contact us today at (507) 387-7200 or stephen@mankatobankruptcy.com to learn more.
