Beecher Bankruptcy Lawyer States Bankruptcy Is For The Honest But Un...

Bankruptcy is a right guaranteed by the United States Constitution.  As with many of our rights, it is predicated on the assumption that the citizens exercising it are law-abiding citizens who deserve its benefits.  Bankruptcy relief is no different.

In case law, meaning what the courts have written in their interpretation of the laws, it has been stated that bankruptcy relief is intended for the honest but unfortunate debtor.  What exactly does that mean?

First and foremost, it means that the client must act in accordance with the laws as set forth in the Bankruptcy Code and Rules.  An experienced bankruptcy attorney will explain this to her client, but it begins with a true, accurate and complete disclosure of all aspects of a client’s financial condition.  Transparency is required by the Bankruptcy Code and any attempt to hide either assets or transactions will be viewed very unfavorably by the Bankruptcy Court.

Many clients operate mistakenly under the assumption that whatever they tell their bankruptcy attorney will be broadcast to the community in which they live.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Although the filing of a bankruptcy petition and schedules creates a public document, only those parties with vested interests and knowledge of the bankruptcy court system look for and review that document.  Nothing is put in mainstream publications or aired on television unless the case is a sensational one, like the Bernie Madoff case.  For 2010, there were 1,593,081 filings in the United States of which 1,536,799 were consumer, or non-bankruptcy cases.  Very, very few of these cases were in the news.  So the client contemplating bankruptcy has little reason for concern to have his personal information made public and every reason to cooperate fully with the Bankruptcy Court to obtain the discharge to which he is entitled.  The honest but unfortunate debtor has nothing to fear from the bankruptcy process.