Recent Blog Posts
Understanding Nondischargeable Debts: Support, Fraud, and Recent Loans
One of the most common misconceptions about personal bankruptcy is that a discharge wipes out every debt a person owes. In reality, the Bankruptcy Code carves out specific categories of debt that survive bankruptcy no matter which chapter a person files under. Knowing which debts fall into these categories before filing can shape both… Read More »
Dissolving a Florida Business Without Filing for Bankruptcy
Not every business that is ready to close its doors needs a bankruptcy court to do it. When a company can pay its debts in full, or reasonably resolve them directly with creditors, Florida law provides a straightforward statutory path to wind down operations and dissolve without ever filing a bankruptcy petition. Understanding when… Read More »
How Rising Commercial Insurance Costs Are Pushing Florida Businesses Toward Reorganization
general liability, and workers’ compensation. What is different lately is the pace. Premiums that once crept upward a few percentage points a year are now jumping in double digits within a single renewal cycle, and for many small and mid-size companies, insurance has quietly become one of the largest line items on the balance… Read More »
What Happens to a Lawsuit Judgment When You File for Bankruptcy?
A judgment against you does not necessarily behave the way you would expect once a bankruptcy case is filed. Some judgments get wiped out entirely. Others survive in modified form. A few can even be partially undone if they attached to your property in a way that hurts an exemption you are entitled to… Read More »
Why Chapter 11 May Fit a Struggling Business Better Than Closing Its Doors
Closing a struggling business can feel like the responsible thing to do. Stop the bleeding, lock the doors, move on. But shutting down does not make debt disappear, and it does not necessarily protect an owner who signed a personal guarantee on a lease, a line of credit, or an equipment loan. Chapter 11… Read More »
How a Co-Signer Is Affected When You File for Bankruptcy
Co-signed debt has a way of outliving the original plan. Someone agrees to back a car loan, a private student loan, or a credit card for a family member or close friend, assuming it is a formality. Then the primary borrower runs into financial trouble and starts thinking about bankruptcy, and the co-signer suddenly… Read More »
What Happens to a 401(k) Loan When You File for Bankruptcy
Borrowing against a 401(k) is common enough that many people do not think of it as debt in the traditional sense, and that intuition turns out to matter quite a bit when bankruptcy enters the picture. A 401(k) loan behaves very differently from a credit card balance or a medical bill once a bankruptcy… Read More »
What Small Business Owners Should Know Before Closing Instead of Reorganizing
When a business is behind on its debts, the owner is usually presented with two paths: try to reorganize and keep operating, or wind the business down. The instinct is often to assume reorganization is the responsible choice and closing is giving up. That is not always true, and treating the decision as a… Read More »
Understanding Florida’s Homestead Exemption in Bankruptcy Cases
Florida’s homestead exemption has a reputation that precedes it. Unlike the majority of states, which put a dollar ceiling on how much home equity a bankruptcy filer can protect, Florida’s constitution places no cap on the value of a properly qualified homestead. That single feature has made the exemption a subject of national debate,… Read More »
Can You Discharge Payday Loan Debt in Bankruptcy?
Payday loans are designed to be small. In Florida, a single-payment deferred presentment transaction cannot exceed $500, and the installment version tops out at $1,000. Yet people rarely come to a bankruptcy consultation owing one lender $500. They owe several lenders, often including online outfits that do not follow Florida’s rules, and they have… Read More »
