Reply #6: I filed for Bankruptcy last week [View All]

[JoDog]

The 2005 law has made it incredibly difficult to file for bankruptcy. Once upon a time, the law and the forms were simple enough that people could do it themselves. Now, most must hire a lawyer for $1,000-$2,500 per case. The law also brought in mandatory credit counseling, bringing an extra layer of cost (the filer must pay for those services) shame, embarassment and legal complexity (paperwork proving you've had both filing sessions on time must be filed by a specific date, or the entire case can be thrown out).

There's also the complication that while bankruptcy is a federal law and cases must be filed and handled in a federal court, the rules on exemptions (property that is automatically protected in a bankruptcy) vary from state to state. There are 50+ different sets of rules determining what is exempt in a bankruptcy. Why can't we have just a couple sets of federal rules or regional rules? I don't know.