When I started to work with the city, I realized that I was going to be working alongside our attorneys every single day. While I was a little nervous around them at first, we quickly became friends and all of that anxiety melted away. It was really neat to see how many different subjects they could handle, and I realized just how necessary they were for helping me to manage various daily occurrences. On this website, I thought it would be really great to start talking about how to work with lawyers, and what it might mean for you and your family if you seek legal advice early.
Cassandra Stone
Committing bankruptcy fraud is a serious offense that you will want to avoid if you plan on using bankruptcy as a way to relieve debt problems you have. While there are situations in which people intentionally do things to defraud the bankruptcy system, it is also possible to inadvertently commit fraud in your case, but it is vital to avoid this if you want to find relief through bankruptcy.
What is bankruptcy fraud?
Bankruptcy fraud is a term used to describe situations in which people deceive the court before or during a bankruptcy case. Bankruptcy fraud is illegal and has consequences if you are caught.
What are the common ways people commit bankruptcy fraud?
There are a lot of different ways people try to deceive the court when filing for bankruptcy, and one of the ways is by hiding assets. People also try to deceive the court by paying off certain bills prior to filing or by giving things away before they file. They will also hide money that they expect to receive, as well as a number of other things.
People can inadvertently commit fraud by forgetting to disclose an asset or debt they have, and this is why it is vital to make sure you submit documents about every asset, debt, and type of income you have when you are completing your bankruptcy documents.
What are the consequences of bankruptcy fraud?
When a person commits bankruptcy fraud, there are several different things that can happen. If the fraud was based on an accident, the consequences will likely be less stringent than if a person was purposefully aiming to deceive the court.
One of the consequences a person faces from this is a dismissal of the case. The court will dismiss the case with or without prejudice when fraud is detected, Having a case dismissed with prejudice will often prevent you from refiling for a period of time or permanently.
The other consequence is criminal charges. The bankruptcy court can file criminal charges against you if you are caught doing this, and you could face fines and prison time as a result.
How can you avoid this?
The best thing to do to avoid committing inadvertent fraud in your case is to be completely honest and follow all the rules. Hiring a bankruptcy lawyer is also a great step to take because your lawyer will make sure that you do everything you need to do and avoid things you should not do for your case.
For more information, contact a bankruptcy lawyer.