Legal Question in Family Law in California
Removing Interest Charged to Back Support During Bankruptcy
In the past I had to file a personal Chapter 13 bankruptcy in Federal Court.
During the time I was in Chapter 13 the DA at the Family Support Division continued to charge interest on a past due balance for child support. During that same time I was told by a representative in that office that the interest being charged during the full time period I was in Chapter 13 could be stopped and removed. It has now been several years since my bankruptcy has been discharged. On at least three occasions I have written letters to the DA asking him to remove all interest that was added to my account during the time I was in Chapter 13. The office has never sent me a written reply nor have they removed the interest from my account. To the best of my knowledge there was an automatic stay that stopped interest from being charged on accounts during bankruptcy. The State Board of Equalization was stopped from charging interest during the bankruptcy on my past due balance. Like the State Board of Equalization the DA is also a state/or local government body. How is it that the DA did not stop charging interest while I was in bankruptcy? What can I due to get the interest that was wrongly charged during my bankruptcy removed from my account?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Removing Interest Charged to Back Support During Bankruptcy
Dear Inquirer:
Nothing herein shall create an attorney-client
relationship, unless a written retainer agreement
is executed by the attorney and client. This
communication contains general information only.
Nothing herein shall constitute an attorney-client
communication nor legal advice. There likely are
deadlines and time-limits associated with your
case; you should contact an attorney of your
choice for legal advice specific to your personal
situation, at once.
If you haven't already done so, please visit my
web site at --
http://home.pacbell.net/edbjr/ OR
http://www.CaliforniaDivorceAttorney.com
The site contains quite a bit of general
information about California Family Law, Tenants'
Rights, and Juvenile Dependencies, and EDD
hearings and appeals, as well as information
about me (education, experience, et cetera)
and my office (location, hours, fees, policies).
NOW, IN RESPONSE TO YOUR INQUIRY --
The facts that you have provided are not clear
enough and/or complete enough to provide a
definitive answer to you inquiry; however, I would
say generally postpetition interest accruing on a
child support debt is nondischargeable. In re
Foross (9th Cir. BAP 1999) 242 B.R. 692, 694. Your
best best would be to try to work something out with
the DA by negotiation.
Thanks for sharing your interesting inquiry with
us on LawGuru, and good luck with your case.
Re: Removing Interest Charged to Back Support During Bankruptcy
That is a very difficult area of law and much may depend on the dates that you filed your chapter 13 and the county of the DA that is enforcing the child support order. The law changed a few years ago (I don't have the exact date) which changed the answer to your question. At the current time the answer is certainly that the interest cannot be enforced while the chapter 13 was being paid, but upon discharge it could. There are also questions in my mind of how to calculate the interest. I'm afraid you will probably have to pay someone to research that question, unless there is someone who has already litigated it. Unless there is a recent case, the issue will probably need to be decided by the appellate courts. Get an attorney who knows family law and bankruptcy. It is a tough question and anyone who gives you a definate answer, unless he has done some recent research (which I haven't) may not know what they are talking about.
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