Is bankruptcy like stealing? I have had this question recently ask of me. My response in that is utterly false. Every year, over one million people file for bankruptcy, whether through Chapter 7, Chapter 12 or Chapter 13. These are good people who are in difficult financial situations.
While there is always a few bad actors in every group, the vast majority of bankruptcy filers are in desperate need of financial relief and turn to bankruptcy to assist them through this difficult time. Is bankruptcy like stealing well if you lost your job, if you can’t pay your credit cards, or if became ill or injured and incurred significant medical bills, you are not a bad person for choosing bankruptcy relief. These areas, loss of job, medical debt and divorce are the main reason most folks file bankruptcy. The founders of this country created the bankruptcy laws in the U.S. Constitution to help hard working people take risks to eliminate oppressive debts and move on with their lives. I get that some people speak badly about “bankruptcy” but usually that is due to lack of knowledge and not having seen the effect of oppressive debts on a family or individual. There is nothing dishonest or immoral about seeking debt relief.
As a college recently wrote: “There is no shame and no disgrace in seeking debt forgiveness. In fact it is usually the moral, legal, and best thing to do when you cannot pay your debts. It frees you and the creditor from the charade that someday you will pay the debt. You can move on and the creditor can now write off the debt as uncollectable and take a deduction on his taxes. In fact part of bankruptcy law is the concept of you the debtor getting a “fresh start”. Bankruptcy laws themselves that have been with us for hundreds of years contain the fresh start language. This is because bankruptcy was not created to cause humiliation or to put a sense of defeat into people. It was created to liberate people and businesses, and later municipalities from the crushing effect of debt which cannot be paid by anyone.”
Of course you need to make your own decision on filing bankruptcy. I suggest you make an informed decision free of social misinformation that comes from those lacking knowledge of the actual laws and effects on peoples lives. If you question what to do come in an speak with us we can help you determine what is in your best financial interest then you decide if it’s right for you.