Monthly Archives: May 2022

What Does Bankruptcy Actually Do?

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If you don’t know where to start or what to ask about filing for bankruptcy, start here.

First of all, if you have more debt than you can pay – you are probably eligible for some form of bankruptcy protection.

Second, that last sentence used the term, “bankruptcy protection”, because the idea that people who owe more than they can pay need to be protected from their creditors is at the very heart of the bankruptcy process. Filing a bankruptcy is absolutely the fastest way to stop harassing phone calls, bills in the mail, threats of lawsuits, wage garnishments. Ultimately, a bankruptcy filing can be the first big step towards peace of mine and a good night’s sleep.

Third, bankruptcy is a process that can last anywhere from a few months to a number of years – depending on the chapter of bankruptcy that you file. At the root of this process is disclosing all of your assets and liabilities, some basics about your financial condition and then a conclusion as to how best to put you (and, to a much lesser extent, your creditors) in the best position to move forward. The best part of this conclusion is that it is generally made by you and your lawyer before the case is even filed.

Fourth, the biggest part of filing a bankruptcy is figuring out what your specific options will be and how best to utilize those options to put you in the position you want to be in. This is where a good lawyer comes into play. You want to keep your assets and lose your debt, which is the goal of a well planned bankruptcy filing. The alternative, losing your assets and keeping your debt, does happen but not generally in cases filed by good counsel for clients who honestly and willingly disclose everything they are asked to disclose.

If you have more specific questions, there are hundreds of posts on this blog that should answer most of them. Otherwise, give me a call or send me an email. I am always happy to answer the questions that can really keep you up at night.

Elaine

How to Tell if You’ve Been Sued

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How to Tell if You’ve Been Sued

In Oklahoma it is pretty easy to tell if you’ve been sued. Most Court dockets can be viewed online. What that means is that you can do a quick search and find all cases (for at least most Counties) in which you have been named as a party. Now, I will caution you, nothing is perfect; but OSCN is pretty close. Yes, occasionally a name gets misspelled and doesn’t turn up in a search, yes, in cases with a huge number of parties, not all of them get indexed correctly, but for the most party, you can tell in just a few clicks whether or not you have been sued by just about anybody.

The website is http://www.oscn.net which stands for the Oklahoma Supreme Court Network; and this is what it looks like.

Oklahoma Supreme Court Network Main Page

In the right hand column, about half way down, you will see “Case Search”. Click it and go to the main search page.

Then, you just fill in the blanks. The top box is COURT SELECTION with a drop down menu that lets you pick the County you are interested in searching. If you leave this blank, it will search all Counties – which can be a bit time consuming if your name is John Smith.

The next option is SEARCH BY PARTY. You need to enter your name as you think it would be listed on a lawsuit. So, if your name is Timothy Scott Brown, and you go by Scott, you might want to search for (Last Name) Brown (First Name) Timothy and then do a second search using Scott as your first name.

A simple mistake with this website is assuming that the wildcard symbol is *. It isn’t. The wildcard is %. So, if you want to search for Timothy and for Tim, enter Tim% in the First Name box and it will search for all first names starting with the letters Tim – so you will get Tim, Timothy, Timmy, Timila, etc.

You can also scroll down to the bottom of the page and limit your search by date range. This is helpful if you want to just see if someone has sued you since the first of the year, for instance. So, if you are concerned about a collection suit, or that your Spouse might have filed for Divorce; and you don’t want to sort through the traffic tickets in your younger days, the personal injury case when some idiot ran a red light and hit you a few years ago or that foreclosure case from the 2010 housing crash.

Remember, this isn’t perfect. Also, remember that like all web search engines, it takes some getting used to, so do run some trial and error searches to make sure you are getting things right. In other words, if you do a search on your name and don’t see your divorce from 2007, you are probably doing something wrong.

This is, however, a great tool for calming those nagging worries.

Elaine

Is Your Business Failing?

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The pandemic has been tough for everyone, but it has been brutal for a lot of small businesses. If your numbers aren’t coming back, and you don’t know how much longer you can hold on – here are some things to think about.

First, if a CPA does your taxes, call. They know your numbers, they know your systems, they know a lot about running a business, and they can be objective when you can’t.

Second, before you raid your retirement accounts, think long and hard about how much you want to risk for your business. Too often I see people who have emptied their retirement accounts to pay some bills, instead of pulling the plug and filing for bankruptcy; and a year later they are in my office to file for bankruptcy with the same stack of bills all over again, only this time with no retirement savings. Remember, in Oklahoma, as long as you pay your taxes, no one can take tax qualified retirement accounts from you – creditors can’t, even if they sue you and take a judgment, and a Bankruptcy Trustee can’t.

Third, put together a total list of liabilities – for you and for the business. Be as brutally honest as possible about which accounts you are personally liable for and which ones you aren’t.

Fourth, picture where you want to be in five years. Do you have a path to get there?

Finally, call a Bankruptcy lawyer, feel out whether or not you should consider a Chapter 11 filing to restructure the business. Too often small business owners make that decision too late. A Chapter 11 filing, even the new Sub Chapter V is expensive; and there has to be enough business left to save.

The one thing I can promise you is that there isn’t a bankruptcy lawyer in this Country who isn’t sympathetic right now. The pandemic hasn’t been good for us either. So, don’t be afraid or embarrassed. Just call.

Elaine