Personal Bankruptcy Dismissals

How to prevent dismissal problems in personal bankruptcy cases

The trustee or the court on it's own motion may file a motion to dismiss any personal bankruptcy case. Common grounds for dismissals of personal bankruptcy under chapter 13 include:

  • unreasonable delay caused by the debtor;
  • failure to make monthly payments;
  • discovery of misrepresentation of material facts made by the debtor; or
  • failure to conform to court orders.

In general, in dismissal hearings, the presumption is in favor of personal bankruptcy debtors and against dismissal. If the court finds credible evidence that a debtor failed to honor the terms of a confirmed plan, the case will probably be dismissed.

During dismissal hearings based on nonpayment, debtors frequently exercise their right to convert a Chapter 13 case to Chapter 7. If the court finds willful misconduct on behalf of the a debtor, all further proceedings are subject to dismissal and sanctions may be imposed by the court.

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