Articles Tagged with Child Support And Bankruptcy

A garnishment is an order from a court that is sent to your employer requiring them to withhold certain amount of money from your paycheck. This money is then sent to the creditor. Mississippi law limits the amount of money that your creditors can take from your wages to 25%. Most creditors are limited to the 25%, but some creditors like the IRS, State Taxes and Child Support are allowed to get more.

What Is The Process For Getting A Garnishment?

1. A creditor must file a lawsuit against you and serve you with a summons telling you to come to court.

drivers-license-&-id-bigThe “withholding, suspension, or restriction of a driver’s license, a professional or occupational license, or a recreational license, or the reporting of overdue support to a consumer reporting agency, or the interception of a tax refund” are actions that can be taken upon an individual as a penalty for failure to pay support.  These penalties are excepted from the Automatic Stay and can continue despite the initial filing for protection under bankruptcy. However, by filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy the Chapter 13 plan will provide for payment of the past due amount as well as offer provision for the current and ongoing amount owed to ensure that the debt does not become delinquent at any time during the life of the Chapter 13 plan. Once the Chapter 13 plan is confirmed (you file, attend a 341 hearing approximately 30 days later, then the bankruptcy judge approves the plan approximately 30 days after that thus “confirming” the plan) with payment of the past due support provided in the plan, any continuing action of any of these penalties would be in violation of the confirmed plan and the creditor could be subject to sanctions if they continue any such actions against the debtor.  So bottom line is yes, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy could provide some relief regarding these types of penalties.

jailFiling Chapter 13 bankruptcy can be used to pay past due support over an extended period of time (max of 5 years within a single Chapter 13 plan) and yes, it can protect the debtor from going to jail for previously failing to pay what was due.  It’s important to note that you cannot discharge (wipe out) in any type of bankruptcy (Chapter 7, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, etc) debts relating to child support, maintenance, alimony, and other domestic support obligations.  Not only will the Chapter 13 plan provide for catching up the past due amounts, but it will also provide for the current and ongoing payments in order to prevent the debtor from becoming behind in support during the Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan period.

First of all, discuss your situation with a competent and knowledgeable bankruptcy attorney, preferably one who only represents consumers.  Do it before you do anything thing else, before you pay any creditors or relatives, before you give any property away, before you let the house go, before you take on new credit or sell any of your property.

There are numerous differences between a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy in Mississippi and many reasons to choose one over the other.   Here is a list of reasons why a Mississippi Chapter 13 Bankruptcy might be the best option for you:

A Chapter 13 will save a house from foreclosure.

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