Which Court?

• If you live in Florida and are filing for chapter 7 bankruptcy, it needs to be filed in one of the three Florida bankruptcy courts. The Northern District has courts in Gainesville, Panama City, Pensacola and Tallahassee. The Middle District has courts in Fort Meyers, Orlando, Jacksonville and Tampa. The Southern District has courts in Ft. Lauderdale, Miami and West Palm Beach. In general, the court where you file your bankruptcy forms will be the one closest to you.
  
  

Chapter 7

• Chapter 7 is what most people would consider a bankruptcy. Once your case is filed, a trustee is appointed and your non-exempt property is sold to pay off your creditors. You are able to keep exempt property. To be eligible for chapter 7 bankruptcy, you must pass the means test. If your income for the previous six months is greater than the median income for a family your size in your state and you can pay at least $6,000 over 5 years of $100 a month toward your debt, then you are ineligible for chapter 7.
  
  

Exempt Property

• In Florida, your primary home is considered exempt, but it must be on a half-acre or less if it is located in a municipality or 160 acres or less if it is located outside of a municipality. Statutory exemptions include pensions, 401K plans, tax-deferred retirement plans, Social Security income, disability income, IRAs, annuities, cash value of life insurance, college investment plans, health savings accounts, and hurricane savings accounts. Your car is not totally exempt, but $1,000 in equity is exempted. Finally, $1,000 of your personal property also is considered exempt.
  
  

The Process

• Before you can file for chapter 7 bankruptcy, you must have credit counseling. You will need to attach a certificate of completion with your paperwork when you file. Other information you will need to include with your filing will be complete financial information, including your income, expenses, creditors, amounts owed and property. Once the paperwork is filed, you are protected from collections and foreclosure with an automatic stay. Your trustee will set up a meeting between you and your creditors where you will be questioned under oath about your finances. Creditors can then try and convince the bankruptcy judge to not liquidate their portion of your debt. Otherwise, the trustee and judge will cancel, or discharge, your debts.