No.

Bankruptcy laws are designed to give you a fresh start without having to start all over again with nothing.  As part of your new lease on life you get to keep a certain amount of property for you and your family. This property is called “exempt property.”

The Mississippi exemptions available for motor vehicles provide up to $10,000 worth of equity in one or more vehicles.  Since many  vehicles are worth less then the amount that is owed on them it is not usually necessary to use any of your exemptions for a vehicle.

An individual that is seventy years of age or older is entitled to an additional $50,000 exemption that can be applied to motor vehicles or any other property.  There are many other generous Mississippi exemptions available to protect and allow you to keep other types of property.

If you have questions about bankruptcy in Mississippi, or are considering filing bankruptcy, give me a call at 601.948.1600.

No.

Bankruptcy laws are designed to give you a fresh start without having to start all over again with nothing. As part of your new lease on life you get to keep a certain amount of property for you and your family. This property is called “exempt property.”  The Mississippi exemptions available to homeowner residents are usually sufficient to protect your residence.

They allow an individual or couple to retain a homestead consisting of up to 160 acres of land and $75,000 worth of equity in that property. An individual that is seventy years of age or older is entitled to an additional $50,000 exemption that can be applied to the homestead or any other property. There are many other generous Mississippi exemptions available to protect and allow you to keep other types of property.

Mississippi residents that are interested in exploring bankruptcy and non-bankruptcy options can contact me for a free consultation at 601.948.1600.

There is enough personal and private information revealed in court pleadings for an ID thief to take an individual’s identity and use it to commit fraud. These frauds can take many forms, from simple larceny to complex identity crimes.

An adult may not find out about the identity theft until they review their credit bureau reports or they are contacted by a debt collector.  If it is a child’s information that is taken it might not be discovered for years and years.  Identity theft has become the commonly accepted term for this type of crime, though you can’t really steal someone’s identity, you can only use it.

It can take some victims thousands of dollars and years repairing the damage to their good name and credit record.  During this time they lose out on job opportunities, are denied loans and pay more for credit because of the negative information on their credit reports.  They may be arrested for crimes they did not commit.

Protection of personal, sensitive and private data in court papers is not a new or novel concept.  The E-Government Act of 2002, contains laws governing privacy of information in court files.  Federal courts were directed to immediately conform their rules and practices to the Act.  These rules provided that personal identifying information is prohibited.

Specifically listed as examples of personal identifying information were:

• Social Security Numbers;
• Financial Account numbers;
• and Birth Dates.

The policy and local rules also contain cautions and restrictions on the disclosure of other information deemed sensitive.

The following categories of information were deemed sensitive:

• Personal identifying numbers, such as driver license numbers;
• Medical records, treatments, and diagnoses;
• Employment histories;
• Personal financial information;
• Proprietary or trade secret information.

The restriction pertaining to personal identifying information is equally applicable to this sensitive information.  Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2 and Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 9037 also contain sections on redacting personal data before filing it in court papers.

An individual’s Social Security Number and other private information is of no use and not a concern of the general public.  Interfering with the private affairs of a individual by disclosing this sensitive and personal information intrudes upon their right to privacy and creates a risk of identity theft.

A party who has suffered an exposure to identity theft should be entitled to damages.  These damages may consist of future credit monitoring, fees for security freezes and obtaining periodic credit reports and civil contempt and sanctions for violating the policies, rules and orders of the court, injunctive relief to render the offending document inaccessible to the general public and compensatory and punitive damages, attorney fees, expenses and suit money.

In collection type cases and bankruptcy cases the underlying debt should be canceled as part of a settlement or judgment.

Mississippi residents that are interested in exploring bankruptcy and non-bankruptcy options can contact us for a free consultation at 601.948.1600.

This is a question that comes up at every conference I have with individuals considering debt relief.  It is a natural question since very few of us could obtain a house or car without access to credit.

Credit Bureaus are allowed to report a bankruptcy filing for ten years.  That fact that  a bankruptcy is recorded on your credit report doesn’t mean you will never be able to buy a house and a new car or truck.  Bankruptcy does not carry the same tarnish today that it carried in the days of your grandparents.

One of the primary temptations facing people who file for debt relief is the flood of new credit cards they are offered after filing for Chapter 7.  You will not have to wait years and years to build up your credit rating or to obtain new credit.

It is very easy to be led astray with the offers of credit you receive after going the Chapter 7 route.  I warn my clients to be very careful about obtaining new credit cards. At first, any new credit card is likely to be a high interest, high fee type card. It may not be worth this price to have credit cards this early after your discharge. Getting back to a simple life and living on a cash basis is the way to go for a while after bankruptcy.

Mississippi citizens file bankruptcy for many reasons and it is not always the fault of the person who filed.  Medical bills and illness, unemployment, full time hours reduced to part time hours, and death or divorce of a spouse can cause anyone to fall behind on their financial obligations and make it impossible to catch up.

Credit bureau reports can be full of errors and mistakes since they don’t have any incentive to correct and remove inaccurate information.   Each person must constantly review the reports and dispute outdated and incorrect information on their own bureau reports.  In many cases, an individual will need to write the credit bureaus to remove the record of bankruptcy filing after the ten year period expires.

If you have questions about bankruptcy in Mississippi, or are considering filing bankruptcy, give me a call at 601.948.1600.

First, a little history about bankruptcy.  Bankruptcy originates from the Bible.  The Lord told the Israelites in the Old Testament to forgive their debts every seven years and our founding fathers incorporated this into what we know as bankruptcy.

These laws are designed to help honest people get a fresh start in life without losing everything they have worked for.  There is no absolute rule on who should file bankruptcy, but most people wait until it is too late to contact a lawyer to see if they will benefit from filing for bankruptcy.

Here  are some of the alarm signals you should consider as warnings that it is time to contact a Mississippi lawyer for information about bankruptcy:

1. Are you struggling to pay rent or mortgage payments? When the bills start piling up most people will pay the debt collectors that call or harass them the most.   This is wrong, wrong, wrong.Feeding your family and keeping a roof over their heads always takes priority over debt collectors and credit cards.  You never put your house in jeopardy to pay credit cards, medical bill and other unsecured debts.
2. Are you stressed out and losing sleep over your bills?  Losing sleeping, arguing about money with your spouse because of debt problems? Life should not be like this.  One of the leading causes of divorce is disagreements about money.  Bankruptcy may not solve all of your marital problems but it will remove money problems as a source of stress in your marriage.
3. Are you suffering health problems because of money worries?  If you work two jobs or all the overtime you can get, this can lead to burnout, anxiety and exhaustion and will not solve the underlying problems.  Too many people lose sleep and suffer stress-related health problems because of financial struggles and harassment by debt collectors.
4. Are you acting reckless and considering dangerous behavior?  Have you considered illegal activity to solve your problems or do you want to do something that will put your health or your family’s health at risk? Are you gambling to win your way out of debt or drinking? Are these things out of character for you? These are signs of despair and desperate thinking and it is time to see a bankruptcy attorney.
5. Are you robbing Peter to pay Paul? Do you have credit cards that are maxed out? Putting off creditors and shuffling money and debts from one credit card to another is not how you normally pay your bills. Applying for new credit cards to add to the shuffle or to try to get low balance transfer rates are all signs that you are drowning in debt.

If you recognize one of these danger signs call for a meeting with a bankruptcy attorney and find out what your options are.   If you reside in Mississippi and are interested in exploring both bankruptcy and non-bankruptcy options, contact us for a free consultation 601.948.1600.

Mississippi and Federal Bankruptcy law requires that you list each and every creditor, person and company that you owe money.  This does not mean that you will lose your house, car, truck or furniture.  The Mississippi courts require that you list everyone so they can get an accurate picture of your financial situation.

Most secured creditors want you to keep the house, cars and furniture.  Creditors would rather have you paying for the property then get it back, but it will be your decision what property you want to keep and pay for and what to surrender and walk away from.

If you have a zero balance on a bill then that is not a debt, you do not owe them money and they do not have to be listed.  But, speak with your lawyer before you go out and start paying bills to keep from listing them.  You may be creating more problems for yourself and the court may take the money back from the creditor and then divide it among all your creditors.

All credit card companies will cancel your credit card once they find out that you filed bankruptcy even if you don’t list them. This will happen even if you intended to pay them and wanted keep using the card, so there is no reason not to list them.  Credit card companies check your credit periodically so they will find out sooner or later and cancel the card.

If you have questions about bankruptcy in Mississippi, or are considering filing bankruptcy, give me a call at 601.948.1600.

Did you think that you would never get credit again after you filed bankruptcy in Mississippi?

Or that you would have to wait for ten years to get a house or a car?  Absolutely not.

Credit card companies will pack your mailbox with offers of credit.  They want you back in the system using credit cards and carrying a large balance. It’s a temptation that few can resist.

These cards and offers will be from lenders that will charge high interest rates.

The same goes for cars and trucks.  There are numerous companies that will be glad to give you credit.

You shouldn’t run out and start charging up credit bills again, but if you need a vehicle or furniture and appliances you will be able to get credit. National creditors see people who file bankruptcy as a good credit risk since all their debts were wiped out, they can’t file Chapter 7 again for eight years and they have money to spend.

Many Mississippi bankruptcy filers are able to reestablish their credit within one year of their bankruptcy discharge.

If you have questions about bankruptcy in Mississippi, or are considering filing bankruptcy, give me a call at 601.948.1600.

Welcome.  My name is Frank Coxwell.  I’m an Attorney based in Jackson, Mississippi that assists clients with Bankruptcy, Personal Injury and  Civil Litigation matters…anywhere in the state of Mississippi.

Although many of my clients reside in Rankin, Madison and Hinds Counties, I regularly represent clients from across the state with their Mississippi Bankruptcy issues – for both Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 Bankruptcy.

I’ve been solving my clients financial problems for more than 30 years – and it’s been much more than just helping my clients file bankruptcy.

I also assist Mississippi residents with their foreclosure issues and work with other homeowners that are victims of predatory lending and predatory loan servicing.

On this website, you’ll find the answers to many of the Bankruptcy questions you have.  Just type in your question in the search box to the right and see if I have the answer you’re looking for.

Or, you can click on the Categories listed to the right and scroll through the many pages I’ve published on this site.

The Mississippi Bankruptcy information is clearly labeled and you’ll likely have no problem finding the answers to your questions.

If you can’t find the answer to your bankruptcy questions on this site, or you are considering filing bankruptcy, please give me a call at 601.948.1600.

And if I can’t help you because of my commitments to my existing clients, I promise to put you in touch with the most talented bankruptcy attorneys in the state of Mississippi – no matter where you live.