Bankruptcy Law is About Equity

An interesting thing happens when a new client comes in for a consultation, they often feel guilty and ashamed they “let their finances get this out of control.”  One great thing about being a bankruptcy attorney in Fort Collins is that I have the chance to help these people see that there are laws in place which are to protect the people.  The Bankruptcy Law is essentially there to protect BOTH the creditors and the debtors.  How so, you may ask?

How Bankruptcy Law protect creditors:

• When debt is discharged, the debtor must go through sanctioned classes to help them get finances in order so this doesn’t happen again, protecting other creditors from losing money downstream.
• If the debtor started racking up a ton of debt just because they knew they planned to file a bankruptcy, an adversarial proceeding can occur where a lot of the older debt is discharged, but the new debt they thought would “just go away” remains
• There are Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 filings available for corporations  just like there are chapter 7 and Chapter 13 filings available for individuals.
• Assests are looked and and can be distributed to the creditors (cars and homes can often be saved…)

How Bankruptcy Law protects the common man:

• When the debts are unable to be met, there can be a fresh start.
• There is a mechanism to relieve the common person of excessive interest payments and a lifelong problem of collections for some things which may have occured apart from their control or desire (medical bills, layoffs, divorce, etc…)
• Bankruptcy Law protects children and others who depend on payments and financial help

Ultimately, the law seeks to protect those who need protection the most.  It may be the consumer, it may be a business, or it may be a child.  The judges duty is to be as fair minded as they can and award the judgement to the party who needs the most help in the situation.

If you are considering bankruptcy as an option here in Fort Collins, please give us a call so we can meet with you and go over your options!  We want to be your bankruptcy attorney in Fort Collins!