Chicago Bankruptcy Attorney
Understanding the importance of financial security is important for both individuals and businesses. Numerous individuals and businesses often go through an assortment of financial difficulties for a variety of reasons. Often times when such financial difficulties occur, both individuals and businesses feel as if their debts are quite a burden. In order to alleviate much of these burdens associated with debt the option of bankruptcy is often considered. Bankruptcy is a legal process which helps people to dissolve or repay existing debts and rebuild financial security. It is important to have a highly trained bankruptcy attorney to assist with the bankruptcy process. Doing this allows individuals and businesses to be well informed about the bankruptcy process in its totality in order to achieve the best results from this debt reduction and resolution process. At JHM Legal, our highly trained bankruptcy lawyers can assist with the filing of Chapter 7, Chapter 11 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy.
Chapter 7
Chapter 7 is a form of bankruptcy that is available to assist both individuals and businesses with the dissolution of debt. This form of bankruptcy involves the dissolution and liquidation of all current assets in order to dissolve existing debts. This particular form of bankruptcy is preferred by both individuals and businesses because it is relatively quick to put in place in comparison to Chapter 11 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy options. In most cases, Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings usually take about four months. In this brief amount of time, a Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding can help prevent further attempts to collect debts in the form of wage garnishments and collection agency attempts. It is very important to note that individuals and businesses that are interested in pursuing Chapter 7 bankruptcy should speak with a qualified attorney in order to determine if this particular form of bankruptcy is possible given personal financial circumstances. In most cases, those interested in pursuing Chapter 7 bankruptcy will need to pass a means test and submit personal financial information as part of the Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings.
Chapter 11
Businesses that are interested in reallocating their finances to allow for repayment of existing debts should consider Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Chapter 11 bankruptcy is available for business and corporations that are interested in developing payment plans which allow for the repayment of debt while maintaining the possession of business property. This differs greatly from Chapter 7 bankruptcy in that businesses do not have to liquidate their business assets in order to pay off debts. Likewise, under Chapter 11 bankruptcy businesses are able to continue operating in their full capacity. In order to move forward with Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings a business should obtain the counsel of a qualified bankruptcy attorney so that a payment plan can be presented and agreed upon between the business and the creditors. This particular agreement binds both the business and creditors to specific repayment terms for existing debts. Such stipulations as the time frame in which the debts must be repaid and how much is paid on a periodic basis is stipulated within the agreed upon legally binding payment plan.
Chapter 13
Individuals also have the option of using a payment plan in order to dissolve their existing debts. Chapter 13 bankruptcy is equivalent of Chapter 11 bankruptcy except it is specifically for individuals. Under Chapter 13 bankruptcy, individuals set up a payment plan with the assistance of their lawyer to repay specific debts within 3 to 5 years. Under this particular bankruptcy proceeding, individuals avoid liquidating their personal assets by agreeing upon payment terms for existing debts. Chapter 13 bankruptcy proceedings are highly preferred by those that want to avoid liquidation of personal assets in order to repay debts.
Filing for bankruptcy can be a very complicated process. For this reason, it is very important that individuals and businesses have the assistance of qualified bankruptcy attorneys. JMH Legal specializes in assisting individuals with their bankruptcy proceedings. Contact JMH Legal to learn more about the bankruptcy process.