Following is a transcript of a chat held on December 11, 1995 in the Coliseum. The Court TV guest was lawyer Brian Zinn, who answered questions on the subject of bankrupcty.
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OnlineHost: Your host this tonight is AOLiveMC2 (Rusti I).
AOLiveMC2: Welcome to America Online, Brian Zinn.
GuestCTV: Thank you.
AOLiveMC2: Brian could you tell us a little about yourself and Court TV?
GuestCTV: Certainly...
GuestCTV: I practice in New Jersey, although I am also admitted in ...
GuestCTV: NY, DC, the Third Circuit , and the Supreme Court
GuestCTV: Also....
GuestCTV: I specialize in bankruptcy and commercial litigation...
GuestCTV: Although my firm, Cohn Lifland, covers each area of the law.
GuestCTV: I would be happy to talk about bankruptcy...
AOLiveMC2: Thank you Brian.
GuestCTV: Or field questions.
AOLiveMC2: Let's take some questions then.
AOLiveMC2: Here's our first question.
Question: How hard is it to get unsecured credit cards after a bankruptcy and
what do they look for?
GuestCTV: That's a good question, since most people believe that they can't
get credit for 7-10years
GuestCTV: But that is just a myth...
GuestCTV: The word "bankruptcy" may stay on a credit report for 7-10 years...
GuestCTV: But I have seen people get mortgages 6 months after they filed
GuestCTV: Banks or credit card companies will look at several things...
GuestCTV: They will look at how much money you've saved, your income, and
your general...
GuestCTV: financial picture...
GuestCTV: In general, banks or credit card companies like to wait about 2
years after you file...
GuestCTV: Before they'll decide to give you credit...
GuestCTV: But if one company turns you down, go to another...
GuestCTV: You will probably receive applications for secured credit
immediately...
GuestCTV: Which you should apply for to start building your credit.
Question: Can I keep my house if I file for bankruptcy?
GuestCTV: There are different types of bankruptcy...
GuestCTV: The most common are 7, 11, and 13...
GuestCTV: A good attorney will steer you in the right direction and tell you
...
GuestCTV: All your options which would enable you to keep your house...
GuestCTV: In general, the answer is yes...
GuestCTV: But I would need to know a client
GuestCTV: oops...
GuestCTV: a client's entire financial picture first...
Question: my credit is very bad but can not afford to pay my bill, yet i do
not owe that much, is
Question: this for me?
GuestCTV: I always recommend to see if you can work something out...
GuestCTV: with the person to whom you owe $...
GuestCTV: Generally, credit card companies are tough to deal with...
GuestCTV: But it's possible that they can work out a payment plan with you...
GuestCTV: If you owe less than $1000, I would recommend doing everything you
can...
GuestCTV: to work it out...
GuestCTV: Unfortunately, if you can't, you may have to file in order to stop
the interest...
GuestCTV: from burying you...
GuestCTV: And your credit report will continue to get ugly if you don't do
something about it.
Question: what are my options? I am going through a divorce and we are
extremely in debt.
GuestCTV: Divorce and bankruptcy can be messy...
GuestCTV: Not even the courts can agree on what should happen...
GuestCTV: There are cases all the time discussing when the 2 clash...
GuestCTV: Since this is only a 1-hour forum, I can't get into details now...
GuestCTV: But you can always call me at 201-845-9600...
GuestCTV: So I can help you or recommend someone who can in your area...
GuestCTV: But don't call now because I'm busy at the moment (sorry, lawyer
humor).
Question: how does one go about rebuilding their credit and how long does it
take?
GuestCTV: I answered most of this question above...
GuestCTV: But generally, 2 years is a rule of thumb...
GuestCTV: If you were a bank, would you rather...
GuestCTV: Lend $ to someone who owes a lot of $ to a lot of people...
GuestCTV: Or to someone who owes nothing (because they just filed bkcy)...
GuestCTV: and can't file again for 6 years...
GuestCTV: That's how banks look at it.
Question: Is it true that if I file for bankruptcy, I won't actually have to
pay back as much as I
Question: owe?
GuestCTV: In general, yes...
GuestCTV: Each person's situation is different...
GuestCTV: For instance, in most Chapter 7s, you pay nothing, and your debts
get erased...
GuestCTV: In Chapter 11 or 13, there is a formula that is used...
GuestCTV: to determine how much you pay...
GuestCTV: Of course I'm generalizing, since some debts can't get erased.
Question: If one uses Consumer Credit to negotiate bill payer plans, is a
notation made in that
Question: persons credit file?
GuestCTV: To tell you the truth, I don't know...
GuestCTV: But that is because I try and tell clients to steer away from those
types of agencies...
GuestCTV: You can negotiate yourself, without paying a fee to someone else to
do it..
GuestCTV: One client came in to see me and it turned out that the agency had
taken...
GuestCTV: the client
GuestCTV: oops...
GuestCTV: the client's $ without paying anything off !
GuestCTV: But some agencies may be reputable...
GuestCTV: I try not to have that much contact with them.
Question: After filing, does one continue to do business as usual until
proceedings are complete?
GuestCTV: It depends upon the type of case you file...
GuestCTV: In a ch. 7, the answer is usually yes..
GuestCTV: In 11 or 13, you have to comply with all sorts of guidelines...
GuestCTV: In an 11, you need to set up a separate bank account, for example.
Question: Exactly what is bankruptcy
GuestCTV: Bankruptcy comes from the latin meaning "broken bench"...
GuestCTV: In olden times, when a merchant owed his creditors $...
GuestCTV: The creditors would take his bench that he sat on at the
marketplace...
GuestCTV: and break it, signifying that all his wares were ready to be
liquidated so the creditors..
GuestCTV: could be paid whatever they collected...
GuestCTV: Bankruptcy in the US is more merciful than that, though,...
GuestCTV: And with a good attorney, you should be able to keep most or all of
your possessions...
GuestCTV: The Bankruptcy laws allow you to keep certain $value worth of
items...
GuestCTV: in a ch. 7...
GuestCTV: For example, you can keep up to $8400 in furniture and clothing
(forced sale value)...
GuestCTV: There are many more...
GuestCTV: Which I could tell you about if you would like to call me.
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AOLiveMC2: We have time for one more question, Brian.
Question: When should it be considered an option
GuestCTV: If you can't work things out with your creditors yourself...
GuestCTV: Or if you have been served with legal papers(summons and
complaint)...
GuestCTV: Then I suggest you call an attorney...
GuestCTV: There are too many times that a client has come to me too late to
save his house...
GuestCTV: because he ignored a lawsuit...
GuestCTV: and could have saved it earlier...
GuestCTV: I really enjoyed giving this seminar, and hope it helped you...
GuestCTV: Please feel free to call me at 201-845-9600 if you have any other
questions...
OnlineHost: All good things must come to an end. Time is up for this event.
GuestCTV: I hope AOL will have me back soon.
AOLiveMC2: Thank you for an informative session, Brian Zinn.
AOLiveMC2: And thank you to our audience members for joining us.
