Lifetime's "Dance Moms" star Abby Lee Miller found out the hard way that you can't fool around with federal bankruptcy laws and get away with it. She has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, in addition to being fined $40,000 and ordered to pay a $120,000 judgment. Miller's problems began in 2015 when she was charged with hiding nearly $800,000 of income while going through Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings between 2012 and … [Read more...]
Money Issues-Dealing With Them Before You Lose More Sleep
Money problems can keep us up at night. It's a stress that many of us face at some point in our lives. I wrote about another source of stress, divorce, a few weeks ago. Financial stresses can be more difficult to deal with than any other type of stress in life because there may not be one solution to the problem. MarketWatch recently reported that 65% of Americans lose sleep over money worries. That's even higher than when the economy began to tank in 2007 (57%). The fact is while stocks … [Read more...]
Florida Bankruptcy Means Test
The means test in Chapter 7 bankruptcy only applies to higher income bankruptcy petitioners. According to bankruptcy law, this means test is only for those whose income is higher than the Florida median according to family size. The means test applies for filers whose debt is primarily consumer debt. If your debt is primarily "business" debt (as opposed to "consumer" debt) then you are allowed to file Chapter 7 case without regard to your current level of income. Additionally, disabled … [Read more...]
Bankruptcy, Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 What’s the Difference?
Bankruptcy is governed by federal law and all bankruptcy proceedings are heard in federal court. In our area, the bankruptcy court is located in Tampa. In most instances, bankruptcy for individuals will usually mean filing a chapter 7 or a chapter 13 bankruptcy. Essentially, there are some basic differences between the two and I can help you choose which is appropriate for your particular financial situation. While bankruptcy is complex, there are some fundamental differences between … [Read more...]
Five Things to Avoid in Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy allows you to resolve insurmountable debt in a legal way. The bankruptcy laws provide you with a fresh start to your financial life. However, they are provided in good faith and assume you will comply with the provisions of the law. Here are five things you want to avoid if you’re thinking about filing bankruptcy: Be honest about your situation. You will need to provide your bankruptcy lawyer with complete and accurate data of your finances. I will help you ensure that we … [Read more...]
