Nazette Marner Nathanson Knoll LLP

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Law in Cedar Rapids

• In a chapter 13 case, you have to promise to pay your disposable income every month for at least 3 years to the bankruptcy trustee.  If your income is above the median, then you have to follow a five-year plan.  Suppose that your budget shows that you have $300 a month you could pay toward your unsecured debt.  You would make that payment every month for the designated length of your plan, and after you have made all of the promised payments, then the judge will discharge, or wipe out, the rest of what owe on that debt.
• Whether you file a 7 or a 13 petition, when you file a petition, the judge immediately issues a stay, which is an order freezing your creditors.  A notice is sent to all of your creditors that tells them that they cannot have any contact with you or make any effort to collect the debt.  That means that they cannot garnish your wages, they cannot sue you, they cannot call you on the phone, they can’t even send you bills.  Any contact that a creditor wants to have with you about the debt, they have to call our office and deal with us instead.

Learn more about working with attorney Henry Nathanson at his personal website.