How to File Bankruptcy With a Joint or Authorized User on an Account
- 1). Prepare a list of all of your creditors, the amounts you owe to them and the nature of the debt. You will need to include any account that lists you as a user. This includes accounts where you might not be the primary account holder but an authorized user. It also includes accounts where you are the primary account holder but there are other users of the account.
- 2). List the source, amount and frequency of your income. Include not only paychecks but retirement, disability, Social Security or other income that you regularly receive.
- 3). List all of your property and your monthly living expenses. The monthly expenses a breakdown of all your spending during the month. You also need to include exempt property on the property list, though it can be marked as exempt.
- 4). Submit the documents to the bankruptcy trustee. The trustee and the court will evaluate whether you are responsible for debts on which you are a joint or authorized user and if so, how much of the debt you are responsible for. This is often a major consideration when a person files for bankruptcy, but his spouse does not. The court then looks at the entire household's financial position.
- 5). Take responsibility for your portion of the debts. In most instances, only your share of the debt will become part of your bankruptcy. In the case of a Chapter 7 filing, your portion of the joint debt will be eliminated and the joint holder becomes responsible for the remaining portion. If the debt was for an asset, you will lose any claim to the asset. With a Chapter 13 filing, you will pay at least some of your portion of the debt back, though probably at more favorable rates. The joint holder's terms will remain the same for his portion of the debt.
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