What Is Bankruptcy

Hello, This is a good question and yet it is difficult to answer in the limited space provided here. Our website has a lot of good information on the topic of personal bankruptcy. From the main page check out Personal Options / FAQs /Personal Bankruptcy FAQs. In summary, bankruptcy is a legal process giving immediate protection to individuals who are in severe financial difficulty. Once a person files an assignment in bankruptcy, a stay of proceedings comes into effect that prohibits creditors from continuing their collection efforts so you get relief from creditors. During the process there are a number of duties to complete including paying fees, debt counselling sessions, and submission of monthly income and expense statements. The Trustee must also file your income tax return for the year in which you are filing for bankruptcy (plus any other previously unfiled statutory returns). If you are entitled to a refund it will go to the bankruptcy estate for the benefit of your unsecured creditors. Similarly, if you are entitled to the quarterly GST credits, you will lose those for a period of time. If you get your duties completed in 9 months and this is your first bankruptcy, you are eligible for an automatic discharge. The unsecured debts that you had are discharged (i.e. forgiven) and you get a fresh financial start. Certain debts are not discharged including but not limited to child support, alimony, student loan debts (if out of school less than 7 years), fines, and debts arising from fraud. For more information on personal bankruptcy (e.g. assets, secured creditors), please refer to Personal Options / FAQs /Personal Bankruptcy FAQs from our main page. Brad Milne, CIRP Trustee in Bankruptcy Brandon, Manitoba