Passing The Means Test
Many new clients are convinced they cannot pass the means test for Chapter 7 — that recent laws have made it impossible to be “poor enough” to qualify for debt relief. They think no one qualifies anymore, because the test is too strict.
Think about it. The bankruptcy means test idea is based on the belief that well-off people are lining up to have their assets liquidated. It is based on the worry that people who are broke are really rich, gaming the system.
Does that make sense to you? Of course not, because it’s nonsense, cooked up to discourage you from seeking the relief you need and are entitled to under the law.
Yet that’s what creditors want you to think, that you will be turned away and your filing denied. The truth is that most people seeking Chapter 7 do qualify. If you fail the test in one part, you can make it up in the next.
Our message at The Law Offices of Arnold S. Levine is simple: Don’t be discouraged by means tests rumors. The test is complicated, and hard to figure out, but in the end, it is not something to fear. Our lawyers have walked innumerable clients through the means test. In situations where they really did have too much income to qualify for Chapter 7, they easily qualified for Chapter 13, which in many ways is even more powerful than Chapter 7.
Shame On The Shamers!
Creditors go to great lengths to paint bankruptcy as something shameful. Like it’s your fault that the economy tanked; that your child came down sick; that you and your ex split up and were impoverished after divorce.
The truth is, Ohio, Kentucky and the federal government all agree it is essential to have this safety valve in our economy, so that debtors don’t keep falling forever. Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 get people back in the game. The shame belongs to the creditors, for making people feel so bad about things that couldn’t be helped.
If you are struggling with unpayable bills, relief is at hand. The Law Offices of Arnold S. Levine of Cincinnati will do all the work for you. You just have to call our attorneys at 513-823-3257. Or introduce yourself with this email.