The idea here is to prevent a form of serial bankruptcy in which debtors file and dismiss their cases to ensure a foreclosure on their properties is never executed. Reason number two is circumstances in which the debtor voluntarily dismissed the case after a creditor filed a motion to lift the automatic stay. Here, the Bankruptcy Code appears to be giving bankruptcy judges a way to avoid dismissing these kinds of cases with prejudice, or it’s trying to standardize the punishment for some forms of debtor misconduct. Reason number one is if the debtor “willfully failed to abide by court orders or failed to appear before the court to properly prosecute the case,” and the court dismissed the case. It sets a time bar, 180 days, on debtors whose cases have been dismissed without prejudice for one of two reasons. Now, there is an exception to this limitation spelled out in section 109(g) of the Bankruptcy Code. This limitation is what New York bankruptcy lawyers refer to when they characterize dismissals as “without prejudice.” That is, a debtor can refile the case without any penalty. Section 349(a) of the Bankruptcy Code prevents a dismissal from interfering with a debtor’s future rights to discharge debts or refile bankruptcy in the future. A few months ago, I wrote about when a chapter 7 bankruptcy case can be dismissed, and I touched on dismissals that are with or without “prejudice.” Today I’ll clarify what this means for New York bankruptcy debtors.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |