WHAT DOES “DISCHARGED” MEAN?
The goal of a bankruptcy proceeding is to obtain a discharge of debts. When a debt is discharged, it is no longer enforceable against the debtor personally. Personal liability When you have personal liability for a debt, a creditor with a judgment can use legal processes, like levy and garnishment, to reach your non exempt assets and earnings even though those assets were not pledged as collateral and the debt was unsecured. The bankruptcy discharge eliminates the debtor’s personal liability for a discharged debt. Liens affect the property, this is not the same as personal liability. Even though personal liability is discharged, most liens (the liability of an item of property for a debt secured by that property) pass unaffected through bankruptcy unless a court order modifies or avoids them. So, after a bankruptcy discharge, a lien may remain on an asset the debtor owned when the case was commenced, but that debt cannot become a lien on any assets that the debtor acquires after the ba
The goal of a bankruptcy proceeding is to obtain a discharge of debts. When a debt is discharged, it is no longer enforceable against the debtor personally. Personal liability When you have personal liability for a debt, a creditor with a judgment can use legal processes, like levy and garnishment, to reach your non exempt assets and earnings even though those assets were not pledged as collateral and the debt was unsecured. The bankruptcy discharge eliminates the debtor’s personal liability for a discharged debt. Liens or in rem liability Even though personal liability is discharged, most liens, the liability of an item of property for a debt secured by that property, pass unaffected through bankruptcy unless a court order modifies or voids them. See what debts are secured by liens? So, after a bankruptcy discharge, a lien may remain a charge on an asset the debtor owned when the case was commenced, but that debt cannot become a lien on any assets that the debtor acquires after the ba
