Bankruptcy is governed by Title 11 of the United States Code, which is referred to as the Bankruptcy Code. A fundamental goal of the Bankruptcy Code is to give debtors a "fresh start" from burdensome debts. Generally, there are two typess of bankruptcies for consumers; Chapter 7 and Chapter 13.

Chapter 7
In a Chapter 7 case, the goal is to obtain a discharge of as much "dischargeable debt" as reasonably possible, while retaining as much "exempt property" as permitted under the Bankruptcy Code. Clearly, not all debts are dischargeable(for example, non-dischargeable debts would include most taxes, all alimony and support, most student loans, etc.) and not all property is exempt (many types of items will be exempt, but in most cases, there are dollar limits - maximums - for those Items). Creditors and other parties have a certain fixed period of time to file any objections to document filed by Client and/or to the granting of the discharge, unless that time is exended by order of the Court.

Chapter 13
In a Chapter 13 case, the goal is to have the Court enter an Order "confirming" (approving) the Client's Chapter 13 Plan, with the expectation that the Client will perform the obligations and make the monthly payments as called for in the Plan, as confirmed. In addition, Client must keep current with all post-petition payments to secured parties with respect to property the Client intends to retain, such as a house (on time monthly mortgage payments after the case is filed) or a car (on time monthly payments of the car loan). All normal and regular expenses from th e date the case is files "going forward" must be paid on time. Creditors and other parties may be filed may file objections to documents filed by the Client and/or objections to confimation of the Chapter 13 Plan.

Process
The Procedural aspects of the bankruptcy process are governed by the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure (often called the "Bankruptcy Rules") and local rules of each bankruptcy court. The Bankruptcy Rules contain a set of official forms for use in bankruptcy cases. The Bankruptcy Code and Bankruptcy Rules (and local rules) set forth the formal legal procedures for dealing with the debt problems of individuals and businesses.

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