Ratings & Reviews
- posted: May 01, 2023
Bankruptcy provides a fresh financial start, but it doesn’t mean that you won’t fall on hard times in the future. You could suffer a career setback, have a major health problem or go through some other life event that causes you to be in financial straits again.
If are thinking about a repeat filing, here is some good news: there is no limit on how many times you can file. But there are rules specifying the amount of time that you need to wait after one bankruptcy filing before filing again.
If your original bankruptcy was unsuccessful, then you may have to wait six months before filing again. An unsuccessful bankruptcy means your debts weren’t discharged. This could have happened because you failed to make a court appearance, to submit necessary documents or to follow a court order.
If your original bankruptcy was a success, meaning your debts were discharged, then the waiting time depends on the type of bankruptcy you originally completed. The time period runs from the date of the original filing, as follows:
- Chapter 7 after Chapter 7 — You must wait at least eight years to file a Chapter 7 again if your first case was successful.
- Chapter 7 after Chapter 13 — If you originally filed a Chapter 13, you need to wait six years to file a Chapter 7. This waiting period can be shortened if you repaid 100 percent of your unsecured debts during Chapter 13 or if you repaid 70 percent or more of the debt and tried in good faith but unsuccessfully to repay the rest.
- Chapter 13 after Chapter 7 — You are allowed to file a Chapter 7 immediately after finishing a Chapter 13. This is known as a Chapter 20. However, if you don’t file the Chapter 20 immediately, then you will have to wait four years to file a Chapter 13.
- Chapter 13 after Chapter 13 — You can file a second Chapter 13 two years after the first. In practice, this is rare because the Chapter 13 repayment plan in the first case normally lasts between three and five years.
If you fail to abide by these waiting periods, you might lose the protection of the bankruptcy automatic stay that prevents creditors from taking action to collect debts. If you file another case within a year of a prior one, the automatic stay will last only 30 days. If you file two or more cases within the past year, there is no automatic stay at all. To get a stay or an extension of a stay, you will need to prove to the court that you are not using the bankruptcy system in bad faith.
At the Law Offices of James C. Zimmermann, we help New Jersey residents seek bankruptcy protection as often as is needed and legally possible. Please call 973-764-1633 or contact us online to schedule a free initial consultation. We have offices in Vernon, Wayne, Pompton Lakes, Hackensack and Nutley.