What kinds of bankruptcies are there?
There are four kinds of bankruptcy proceedings that are commonly referenced by the different chapters of the federal bankruptcy code that covers them: • Chapter 7 is the most common type of bankruptcy proceeding. Chapter 7 is available to individuals, married couples, corporations and partnerships. In this proceeding, individual debtors may seek a discharge of their unsecured debts, meaning that they are extinguished by order of the bankruptcy court at the end of the proceeding. Unless there are problems in the case, individual debtors are usually able to get a discharge within four to six months of filing the case. As in all bankruptcy filings, the filing of a Chapter 7 proceeding imposes an automatic stay on all creditors, which prevents them from trying to collect their debts without first getting approval of the bankruptcy court. A bankruptcy trustee is appointed to the debtor’s case, who controls all of the debtor’s assets. All creditors must be given notice of the proceeding. The
