G in the Bankruptcy Alphabet is for “Garnishment”: Will Bankruptcy Help?

By Christopher C. Carr, Esq. Chester County bankruptcy attorney. Tel: 610-380-7969 Email: cccarresq@aol.com Web: christopherccarrlaw.com

 is for for “Garnishment”: Will Bankruptcy Help?  In addition to the obvious monetary loss for the debtor/garnishee, a garnishment can negatively impact employment, because the employer will see that the employee is having credit issues[1] and also is presented with the added administrative burden of complying with periodic court orders. Can you put a stop to it with a bankruptcy?

A.      Garnishment For Ordinary Consumer Debt:

In most states, garnishment for ordinary consumer debt is permitted. Most US states allow wage garnishment for consumer debt with the exception of Pennsylvania, South Carolina, North Carolina and Texas (depending upon the debtor’s circumstances).

The automatic stay in bankruptcy (Section 362 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code) is a fundamental consumer protection.  It halts most creditor actions against you, including collection proceedings from the moment your case is filed with the bankruptcy court, including wage garnishment for consumer debt.  A garnishment of wages is considered a collection proceeding under the bankruptcy code.  As a result, a creditor that attempts to garnish wages violates the debtor’s rights to an automatic stay under the Bankruptcy Code.

The automatic stay generally protects you against garnishment until the end of your case whether closed, discharged or denied.   If the bankruptcy discharge is granted and the case is closed then the automatic stay becomes permanent in the form of the discharge injunction. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3689006 by Jay Fleishman, Esq.

B.      Garnishment For Unpaid Domestic Support:

However, garnishment for is a creature of a different stripe altogether, All US states allow income garnishment for tax arrearages and child support and in some states even spousal support (alimony) may be garnished as well. These are termed domestic support obligations (DSO’s).  DSO’s cannot be discharged or modified in either a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, pursuant to 11 USC. 523(a)(5). However, the impact a bankruptcy will have on support payments differs as between a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13.

A Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing is useless against the collection, enforcement, or payment of DSO’s. Thus the automatic stay in effect does not exist in a Chapter 7.

However, in contrast, a Chapter 13 proceeding can actually work to protect the debtor against DSO enforcement actions, including wage garnishments, because all property acquired by the debtor is property of the bankruptcy estate. Thus, all actions to collect or enforce DSO’s usually will be halted by the filing of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Support payments may be temporarily stopped until the plan payment details are worked out as well. For more information on DSO’s and how they are impacted by bankruptcy, see my article “D” is for Domestic Support Obligation.

Law Offices of Christopher C. Carr, MBA,  P.C., is a quality bankruptcy and debt relief practice, located in  Valley Township, west of Coatesville, Pennsylvania, where Attorney Christopher Carr, a Chester County bankruptcy attorney, who has over 30 years if diversified ;egal experience, concentrates on serving the residents of and businesses located within Western Chester County and Eastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, including the communities in and around Atglen, Bird in Hand, Caln, Christiana, Coatesville, Downingtown, Eagle, Exton, Fallowfield Gap, Honeybrook, Lancaster, Lincoln University, Modena, New Holland, Parkesburg, Paradise, Ronks, Sadsbury, Thorndale, Valley Township, Wagontown & West Chester,  Pennsylvania. If you reside or do business in the area and need assistance with a legal issue, please call Mr. Carr at (610)380-7969 or write him at cccarresq@aol.com today!  

 

I also provide Mortgage Modification Services.

©Christopher C. Carr, Attorney at Law, 2011, 2012, All Rights Reserved

Visit the sites of these other lawyers for their pespectives on the letter G:

Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska Bankruptcy Attorney, Ryan D. Caldwell says G is for General Unsecured Creditor.

New York Bankruptcy Lawyer, Jay S. Fleischman who says G is for Garnishment.

Maui Bankruptcy Attorney, Stuart Ing who talks about Garnishment too.

Northern California Bankruptcy Lawyer, Cathy Moran says G is for Guaranty.

Colorado Springs Bankruptcy Attorney Bob Doig says G is for Goals.

Los Angeles bankruptcy attorney, Mark J. Markus says G is for Gifts.

Jacksonville Bankruptcy Attorney, Monica D. Shepard has an article that says G is for Guilt.

Tagged as: Automatic Stay In Bankruptcy, bankruptcy, creditor, debt, Christopher Carr  Bankruptcy Lawyer, Philadelphia Bankruptcy Attorney,  Philadelphia Bankruptcy Lawyer, stay, garnishment

---

[1] Nowadays a credit check is routinely done before a job is offered so credit is obviously of heightened concern to employers.