Believe it or not, there are certain circumstances where you are too broke to file. You simply don’t have the means to even come up with the filing fee which is $335. Just yesterday, a potential client walked 45 minutes to see me in my office. Not only was he unemployed, but he had his driver’s license suspended due to dui. Worse yet, he had an upcoming court date whereby he had to pay the court $4000 for his fine. Of course, he does not have the $4000 and will be begging and pleading for additional time to come up with the money. The judge may not grant his request. In that case, he will likely be incarcerated.
Another gentleman recently came to see me and he is also unemployed. He is a student who is surviving solely on his student loans. This person was suggesting a payment plan of $25 every two weeks. Under that arrangement, it would take nearly 2 1/2 years before he would’ve paid enough to file for chapter 7. Based on his circumstances, he does not need to file for bankruptcy at this time. He is completely collection proof in that he has no assets, no wages to garnish, and no other source of funds. Someone in his position should simply wait until they have something that they need to protect and then they should look to file for bankruptcy.
Being too broke to file does not mean that your condition or situation cannot improve. You could go from unemployed to employed in a matter of days or weeks. If this were to occur, you now have the ability to arrange a payment plan with your bankruptcy attorney to protect your wages from being garnished. Of course it never hurts to get the information about filing even if you don’t feel you can afford it at the present time. By meeting with an experienced bankruptcy attorney you can understand what you should and should not do under the situation. You can avoid some mistakes and pitfalls that others before you have fallen into without the proper advice. If you or someone you know is struggling financially, you can reach out to my office at 847-520-8100. We will offer you a free initial consultation so that you can understand the different chapters of the bankruptcy code and as to how they work. Once you have the knowledge, you have the power to make a difference. If you decide to do nothing, nothing will likely change.
