Protection from creditors is one important benefit of bankruptcy filing. Generally, when a person decides to file bankruptcy, he or she is already behind
on payments on most of his or her debt. Getting behind on payments tends to
snowball—it starts out with credit cards or small debt, then if things do not
get better, the neglect trickles to car and mortgage payments.
There are
many reasons debt can catch up to a person, including job loss and illness to
the individual or family provider. Many of these reasons are beyond the control
of the individual.
Once a debtor has filed bankruptcy, the act of the
filing puts an automatic stay on debt collection. This means that no debt
collector can continue to harass the debtor. Upon filing, a notification is sent
to all creditors. If for some reason a creditor has not received or ignores the
notice, the debtor should notify the creditor that he or she has filed
bankruptcy and all communications should be ceased. If the debtor has a bankruptcy lawyer, communication may be re-routed to the lawyer.
The free
Bankruptcy Worksheet
is a good place to start for anyone considering the legal issues
surrounding personal or business bankruptcy. Or, you can
find a bankruptcy lawyer to help you with credit and bankruptcy legal information and bankruptcy filing.