Bankruptcy and Credit Counseling

Macon Georgia Bankruptcy Lawyer | Bankruptcy Attorney Macon GA

The new reforms of bankruptcy law in 2005 have introduced a compulsory bankruptcy credit counseling prior to filing of bankruptcy, irrespective of chapter it is filed under. The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act make bankruptcy credit counseling a legal requirement for filing of bankruptcy.

The main aim while passing of such legislation was prevention of individuals abusing and bending rules as well as to prevent occurrence of financial difficulties again.

Debt counseling and educational courses for debtors have been introduced so that consumers realize importance of lower debt to income ratio. Thus individuals who are planning to file for bankruptcy need to consult a reputed bankruptcy lawyer and under his guidance gain receipt of bankruptcy credit counseling from an organization providing the service and approved by government. This credit counseling must have been attended at least 180 days prior to filing for bankruptcy.

In addition, an education course for debtors must be completed in order for debts to be eligible for discharge through bankruptcy. This is believed to give debtors an insight into their erroneous money management ways and would equip them with better financial sense to balance income and debts so that financial problems do not occur again.

Approval of Bankruptcy Credit Counseling Service

The credit counseling service must be one approved by Department of Justice’s US Trustee Program. Approved counseling service providers are listed in this program and hence it is better to approach a listed service rather than having to deal with complications later on. Some states like North Carolina and Alabama, have given bankruptcy administrators responsibility of approving credit counseling organizations.

Selection of a Service Offering Bankruptcy Credit Counseling

The approved credit counseling services must provide certain service like:

• Offer assistance in preventing build up credit card debt in excess in future.
• They should be able to provide free service if the debtor is unable to afford the basic fee of $50.
• The service provider must be accredited authentic debt counselors.
• All personal and private information should be kept confidential.

A normal counseling session will last around one hour to one and a half hour. The counseling can be extended through personal session, via phone or internet also. The fee that is normally charged is $50 if debtor can afford it, other wise it is provided free of charge also.

Credit counseling in bankruptcy helps a consumer to identify his miscalculation and areas of financial indiscipline so that they can he rectified. He is taught to avoid excessive credit card debt and money problems in future. A completion certificate has to be provided prior to discharge according to bankruptcy law. This certificate should be supplied free of charge by provider.

Contact a skilled Macon bankruptcy attorney if you need debt relief assistance or want to file bankruptcy.