Round Lake Bankruptcy Lawyer On Chapter 13 Disclosure

As a Round Lake bankruptcy lawyer, I am asked, “will my employer know that I filed for Chapter 13 Bankruptcy protection?”  Your employer does not necessarily have to know that you filed for Chapter 13.  However, in many cases it’s a good idea to have your employer find out, because your employer is going to be taking your Chapter 13 trustee payment directly out of your check.  Payroll control is the mechanism whereby the Chapter 13 trustee gets paid for your Chapter 13 plan payments.  If you are someone who has steady income, we will send a payroll control order to your employer, and your employer will deduct a portion of your salary and pay it towards your Chapter 13 trustee.  

The great thing about payroll control is that as long as you stay employed, you do not have to worry about making your Chapter 13 trustee payment on your own.  You do have to worry about your post-petition mortgage payment and the rest of your bills.  However, you can rest assured that your Chapter 13 play payment is going to be satisfied. 

Additionally, your employer will find out about your Chapter 13 if we need to send an automatic stay to stop a wage garnishment on your job.  We’re basically stopping one wage garnishment and starting another garnishment, basically a payroll control order.  Your employer does not have to find out about your Chapter 13 bankruptcy if your attorney is willing to let you make the Chapter 13 plan payment directly.  In my opinion, the success of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case is contingent upon payroll control.  If you do not allow payroll control or your employer does not encourage you to do payroll control, they you are going to have to make the payments on your own.  Chapter 13 involves making a payment directly to the trustee each month in guaranteed funds; either a money order or a cashier’s check.  By having the money come directly out of your pay, you don’t have to worry about making that payment to the Chapter 13 trustee.  For more information about Chapter 13, contact a local bankruptcy attorney, who will sit down with you and give you a one-on-one consultation so that you can learn all of your rights under the bankruptcy code.