How Does a Bankruptcy Filing Effect Alimony and Child Support Payments?
A Chapter 7 filing should have no impact. Although filing bankruptcy stops efforts to collect debts, actions to collect child support or spousal maintenance are exceptions unless they involve attempts to collect from the property of the estate. In a Chapter 7, this includes all possessions, money, and interests of the estate that the debtor owns at the time of filing. Note that, money earned after the bankruptcy is filed is not considered property of the estate. A debtor under Chapter 13 must pay all domestic support obligations that fall due after the petition is filed. So, neither a Chapter 7 nor a Chapter 13 discharges obligations involving future child or spousal support.
