Bankruptcy

Debtor Can't Reopen Case to Enforce Discharge. Yet.

By Bill McLeod, Esq.

In an October 3 decision, a Massachusetts Bankruptcy Court ruled that a debtor could not reopen her chapter 7 bankruptcy to commence an adversary proceeding to enforce the discharge.

The debtor was involved in an auto accident in 2003 which resulted in the death of another person. Later in the year, the Administrator of the Estate accepted $100,000 from the debtor?s insurance company and signed a release. In December 2004, the debtor filed her chapter 7 bankruptcy petition and received a discharge in April 2005. In the petition, she did not list the Estate as a creditor. There were no assets to distribute to creditors.

Then, in January 2006 the debtor heard from the ?successor? Administrator of the Estate.

Full post as published by McLeod Law Offices on October 15, 2008 (boomark / email).