Chapter 7 (Liquidation)
This is the primary result of a successful Chapter 7 case, releasing the debtor from personal liability for most debts.
What is a discharge?
This must be filed by the debtor, outlining how they will repay all or part of their debt over a set period.
What is a repayment plan (or Chapter 13 Plan)?
The court-appointed official who manages the debtor's estate in a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 case.
What is a trustee?
The Trustee's primary responsibility in a Chapter 7 case is to do this with non-exempt assets for the benefit of creditors
What is liquidate (or sell)?
This type of debt, often associated with credit cards or loans, is typically the most easily discharged in bankruptcy.
What is unsecured debt?
To qualify for Chapter 7, a debtor must typically pass this test related to their income.
What is the means test?
The length of a typical Chapter 13 repayment plan in years, which is mandatory if the debtor's income is above the state median.
What are five (or 5) years?
This stops most collection activities, including phone calls and lawsuits, the moment the petition is filed.
What is the automatic stay?
The time frame (in days) the Trustee can look back to recover certain preferential payments made to "insiders" (like relatives or business partners).
What are 365 days (or one year)?
A debt arising from a judgment for this type of wrongful behavior (e.g., DUI injuries or intentional torts) is generally not dischargeable.
What is willful and malicious injury?
Assets that the law allows the debtor to keep and protect from the trustee are called this.
What are exemptions?
A key goal of Chapter 13 is to stop this action against the debtor's home, allowing them to catch up on missed payments through the plan.
What is foreclosure?
The formal federal law title that contains all the U.S. bankruptcy statutes.
What is Title 11 (or the Bankruptcy Code)?
The Trustee can avoid a security interest on property if the creditor failed to properly do this, which provides public notice of their lien.
What is perfect (or record) their lien?
Most student loans are non-dischargeable unless the debtor can prove that repayment would cause an "undue hardship," often referred to as this test.
What is the Brunner Test?
Debts secured by collateral, like a mortgage or car loan, are handled via this legal document filed by the debtor, stating their intention to keep, surrender, or redeem the property.
What is a Statement of Intention?
In Chapter 13, unsecured creditors must receive at least as much as they would have received in a Chapter 7 case; this is known as the best interests of the this test.
What are creditors?
A payment made to a creditor shortly before filing that allows the trustee to recover the money for distribution to all creditors
What is a preference (or preferential payment)?
This term describes the Trustee's ability to undo certain transfers of property made by the debtor for less than fair value while the debtor was insolvent, prior to filing.
What is a fraudulent transfer?
Debts for domestic support obligations, such as this, are nearly always non-dischargeable.
What is alimony or child support?
In a Chapter 7 case, the debtor generally only gets one of these, unlike Chapter 13 where there is a waiting period.
What is a discharge?
This term refers to the ability in Chapter 13 to separate an unsecured portion of a debt from the secured portion, typically applied to second mortgages on a principal residence.
What is "lien stripping" (or "strip off")?
The federal district court where the debtor's bankruptcy case is actually handled.
What is the bankruptcy court?
The Trustee can assume or reject these—like leases or contracts for services—that the debtor entered into before filing.
What are executory contracts?
The time period (in years) for which recent tax claims, such as income tax, may be non-dischargeable under the Bankruptcy Code.
What are three (or 3) years?