| Creditor Claims |
| A "claim" is a right to payment, whether or not such right is reduced to judgment, liquidated, unliquidated, fixed, contingent, matured, unmatured, disputed, undisputed, legal, equitable, secured, or unsecured. A "claim" may also be the right to an equitable remedy for breach of performance if the breach gives rise to a right to payment, whether or not such right to an equitable remedy is reduced to judgment, fixed, contingent, matured, unmatured, disputed, undisputed, secured, or unsecured. A "debt" is a liability on a claim. More... |
| Time and Necessity of Filing Proofs of Claims |
| A "claim" in bankruptcy is (1) a right to payment, whether or not reduced to judgment, liquidated, unliquidated, fixed, contingent, matured, unmatured, disputed, undisputed, legal, equitable, secured or unsecured; or (2) a right to an equitable remedy for breach of performance if such breach gives rise to a right to payment, whether or not such right to an equitable remedy is reduced to judgment, fixed, contingent, matured, unmatured, disputed, undisputed, legal, equitable, secured or unsecured. More... |
| Nondischargeable Debts |
| Dischargeable debts are those debts that can be discharged through bankruptcy proceedings. Certain debts cannot be discharged through a bankruptcy proceeding. In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, nondischargeable debts cannot be discharged at all, and in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, these debts remain even after the repayment plan is completed.More... |
| Use, Sale, or Lease of Property |
| The Bankruptcy Code governs the use, sale, or lease of property in bankruptcy. The trustee may use, sell, or lease the property of the estate other than in the ordinary course of business only after notice and a hearing. If the business of the debtor is authorized to be operated under Chapter 7, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, or Chapter 13, the trustee or debtor-in-possession may, without notice or hearing, use, sell, or lease property of the estate in the ordinary course of business. More... |
| IRA Protection in Bankruptcy |
| Social Security benefits, company pensions, and 401(k) plans are all shielded by law and are, therefore, not lost to creditors in bankruptcy. Whether that same protection extends to an individual retirement account (IRA) is not clear. The bankruptcy law, which was drafted in the 1970's before IRAs became such an important vehicle for retirement savings, is ambiguous. This has led to contradictory rulings in federal courts around the country.More... |

