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Personal Injury Claims of the Debtor Under Illinois law, a debtor in bankruptcy is entitled to exempt $15,000.00 for a personal injury award or settlement.  This exemption applies to such claims, even if a personal injury lawsuit has not yet been initiated.  If the debtor becomes entitled to rec...

If you are considering filing for Bankruptcy, we will need to make sure that all of your assets will be protected.  If you file for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy in Illinois, the Illinois statutory "exemptions" are used to determine the allowances available to protect your assets.  The Illinois "Wild Card...

On April 24, 2023, new "means test" living expense guidelines were published.  The guidelines originate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey.  They are used to establish the reasonable expense amounts for various categories of individual and family living expenses, such...

The Illinois "Motor Vehicle" Exemption (735 ILCS 5/12-1001(b) provides certain protections to a Chapter 7 debtor that owns a vehicle.  The Motor Vehicle Exemption allows the Chapter 7 debtor to exempt from liquidation a vehicle, if owned outright, that does not exceed $2,400.00 in value.  If ther...

The U.S. Trustee Program periodically publishes revised median income standards .  These standards are based on statistical data that shows the median household income in the filer's location based on household size.  In effect, a change in these income standards can impact, among other things, w...

Debt Management (not to be confused with "Debt Settlement") is an option that enables the debtor to repay unsecured debt through a structured plan.  In most cases, arrangements are made with each creditor to allow for the repayment of each credit account over a period of 5-years.  Typically, the ...

Consumer debt has risen to 15.6 Trillion according to the Federal Reserve's New York District.  As a result of the pandemic, people have amassed significant debt.  The debt level is likely to continue increasing in the coming months as a result of the current inflation.  As a result of the rising...

If you have a second mortgage on your primary residence that is wholly unsecured, you are permitted, in a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy case, to remove or “strip” the lien. A second mortgage is “wholly unsecured” if, at the time of the filing of the Chapter 13 petition, the value of the residence is less...

Creditors can challenge the dischargeability of credit card purchases under certain circumstances. Under 11 U.S.C. 523(a)(2)(c),consumer debts owed to a single creditor and aggregating more than $500 for luxury goods or services incurred by an individual debtor on or within 90 days before the ord...

Here are Some Tips for Improving Your Credit Score Look at your credit report to see how the creditors are reporting your credit activity. You are entitled to one free credit report per year from each of the three credit bureaus, Trans Union, Equifax, and Experian. You can get your reports fo...

The Bankruptcy law requires the debtor to list in his or her Bankruptcy petition a complete list of all property and property interest(s) owned by the debtor. As such, the debtor is required to not only list all property within his or her possession or control, but to also list any property held ...

A “Right to Setoff” is a legal right that allows debtors to reduce the amount owed to a creditor (financial institution) by offsetting against any amounts owed from the creditor to the debtor. If our bank serves you as a credit union and checkings account, you can take money from your checking...

The U.S. Trustee's Office has recently updated the figures that will be used to determine whether a debtor qualifies to file for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy under the "Median Income" test. A debtor will pass the Median Income test in Illinois if the debtor's gross income, including any contributions mad...

Most Chapter 7 cases are completed three months from the time the bankruptcy petition is initially filed. In a typical case, the "341 meeting" (also known as the "Meeting of the Creditors") is scheduled about 30 days from the filing date. After the 341 meeting is held, creditors are allowed 60 d...

In a Chapter 7 case, in order to obtain Bankruptcy relief, you are required to attend a meeting called a "341 Meeting," also called a "Meeting of the Creditors," which is conducted by the U.S. Trustee's Office. The purpose of the meeting is for the Trustee, the official who is assigned to oversee...

Most debtors who seek relief under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code have credit card debt. In most instances, Chapter 7 allows these debtors to discharge their debt. Under certain circumstances, however, recently incurred debt, including credit card debt, can be deemed to be non-dischargeable. Un...

Under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACTA), you are entitled to receive one free credit report per year. You can obtain your free credit report from the Annual Credit Report site, which is a website maintained by the three major credit reporting agencies, Experian, Equifax, and Tr...

A debtor who has previously filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy must wait eight years to file again for Chapter 7 protection. This period is calculated based on the date that the respective Bankruptcy petitions are filed. However, if eight years has not elapsed since a previous Chapter 7 filing, the d...

Under Section 362 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, creditors are prohibited from continuing any further collection action against a debtor who files for Bankruptcy relief. If a creditor is aware of the automatic stay, but continues to pursue collection of a debt, the creditor can be held in contempt ...

In the recent case of Ransom vs. FIA Card Services, N.A., the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a consumer may not use the IRS "ownership expense" deduction for a vehicle when the consumer owns the vehicle but is not obligated, at the time of filing, to make any payments on the vehicle. In the 8-1 de...

If you are planning to file for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, you should follow the rules and guidelines detailed below: Do Not 1) Give any special preference to a particular creditor. The Bankruptcy law prohibits giving special preferences to a particular creditor at the expense of other creditors. A cr...

Our lawyers are pleased to announce the launch of our Crystal Lake general practice blog. Here you will find information about and tips on how to file for bankruptcy, information on personal injury, criminal law, civil litigation and more as well how our firm can help you with your case. You ca...