| Tax
Certificate Office Contact: |
Susan
D. Profant |
|
| (941) 741-4865
- Fax |
(941) 741-4832 - Phone |
|
| Bankrupcy
General Information
Chapter 7 is the liquidation chapter. It is
available to all persons and entities. In a Chapter 7, a trustee
is appointed who is responsible for liquidating assets and making
distributions to creditors. A creditor must file a claim in
a Chapter 7 case in order to receive a distribution. Most Chapter
7 cases are “no asset” cases. In other words, there
are no distributions to creditors. That unfortunate fact should
not deter you from filing a proof of claim as the filing of
a claim is a relatively simple task.
Chapter 11 is the reorganization
chapter. It too is available to all persons and entities but
is typically utilized by corporations or other business entities.
A trustee is not automatically appointed but may be appointed
in extraordinary circumstances, i.e. fraud or gross mismanagement.
A creditor is not required to file a proof of claim if the debtor
has scheduled the creditor with an undisputed claim. However,
the better practice is to file a claim as you will not know
how the debtor scheduled your claim. Statistically, most Chapter
11 cases end up in Chapter 7.
Chapter 12 is designed to permit
family farmers to repay their debts over a period of time from
future earnings and is in many ways similar to a Chapter 13.
The eligibility requirements are restrictive, limiting its use
to those whose income arises primarily from a family-owned farm.
Chapter 13 is the individual
debt adjustment chapter. It is only available to individuals
with a regular income. The Chapter 13 trustee monitors all Chapter
13 cases and makes the distributions to creditors. Chapter 13
is most commonly used to cure mortgage arrears or handle credit
card debts. A creditor must file a claim in Chapter 13. Many
Chapter 13 cases end up dismissed or converted to Chapter 7.
Many debtors file Chapter 13 more than once.
Our office must advise you of the ever increasing number of
bankruptcy cases being filed. When the Tax Collector’s
office is notified of a bankruptcy petition being filed, we
will inform the certificate holder of the bankruptcy petition,
and we urge you to seek advise from your legal advisor concerning
the bankruptcy procedures, proof
of claims, interest rates, payment schedules, defaults,
etc. The Tax Collector cannot represent you as an individual
certificate holder. Once a bankruptcy notice is received, the
automatic stay bars the Tax Collector from any form of enforcement
or collection proceedings. Any activities in process at the
time we receive notice will be terminated immediately.
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